Original Of The Species
by Darkpurplelighter
Summary: Ideologies are put to the test when a private laboratory supported by the government finds a cure for mutation. Now, mutants everywhere have the option of giving up their powers to become human. Rewrite of X-Men TLS featuring the cure storyline only.
1. Angel's Wing's

**Disclaimer-I do not own X-Men, movies, comics, toys, etc. Dialog and certain scenes will be used from X-Men the Last Stand.**

_Agricultural practice served __Darwin__ as the material basis for the elaboration of his theory of Evolution, which explained the natural causation of the adaptation we see in the structure of the organic world. That was a great advance in the knowledge of living nature. Geneticists described evolution simply as a change in gene frequencies in populations, totally ignoring the fact that evolution consists of the two simultaneous but quite separate phenomena of adaptation and diversification._

XXXXXX

A straight razor lies gleaming on a white sink inside of a penthouse bathroom. Also up on the sink was a rope, rubbing alcohol, a steel brush, and other strange instruments. Twelve year old Warren Worthington III was standing in front of mirror, sweating, and concentrating hard on cutting something.

He then gasped in pain when he accidentally cut his back. Biting his lip, Warren stopped and placed the kitchen knife he had in his hand on the sink with the other things and picked up a towel that already had spots on the blood on it and placed it on the cut.

Tears then slowly began to run down the young boy's face which he quickly wiped away. This whole thing wasn't going like he'd hoped. It was taking too long because he couldn't really see what he was doing.

Meanwhile, his father Warren Worthington Senior, a patrician in an expensive suit walked down the hall and saw his housekeeper, Alice approaching.

"Alice, have you seen my son?" Worthington asked.

"He's in the bathroom, Mr. Worthington." She responded as she walked past him and continued down the hall.

"Still?" He said to himself, now starting to become concerned.

He walked down the hallway and approached the bathroom door. He lightly knocked on it, and inside, Warren's head whipped around in a panic as he quickly stopped what he was doing.

"Yes?" He asked.

"Warren, what are you doing in there?"

"Nothing." Warren responded while hurrying to put the things away.

"Come on. You've been in there for over an hour." Worthington responded, really becoming worried now as he heard commotion from inside. "Open the door."

The young boy quickly scurried to hide bloodied kitchen knifes. Blood and feathers also adorned on the white, tiled floor.

"One second!"

Worthington then began to bang on the door.

"Warren!" He yelled, now becoming angry. "Open this door!"

Tears streamed down Warren's face.

"Just a second!"

But it was too late. Worthington forced the door open and rushed into the bathroom only to stop, frozen in his tracks when he saw the blood and feathers on the floor.

"Oh my god." He said to himself in horror. "Not you."

Warren looked at his dad; his bottom lip trembled for a second before he began to sob.

"Dad…I'm sorry…I tried to make it go away."

In the mirror, bloodied stumps on Warren's back mark where a pair of wings began to grow in…

XXXXXX

It was early in the morning when Warren Worthington III, now eighteen years old woke up, sweating as he looked around the room while gasping before realizing that it was just a nightmare, the same nightmare he had rather frequently.

It was a nightmare about the day his father found out he was a mutant. Warren swung his legs over the side of the bed and and wiped the sweat from his brow.

His father, Warren Senior was the CEO of Worthington Industries. It was a metal processing company, focused on value-added steel processing and manufactured metal products, such as metal framing, automotive past-model service stampings, and metal ceiling grind systems.

They had forty four manufacturing companies worldwide, so throughout his life, Warren never had to worry about money. He lived in some of the fanciest mansions, rode in the back of limousines, and got to travel around the world with his father.

His mother died when he was only five, so his father was the only family he had. But despite the face that the two of them spent a lot of time together, Warren never really felt close to him. It was like there was something that kept the two of them from really being close, and Warren knew deep down what it was.

It was because he was a mutant.

And although his father didn't really have anything against mutants, the fact that a lot of other people did was enough. He couldn't imagine how the public or the press would react if they found out that such an important man like Warren Worthington Senior had a mutant for a son.

The two of them talked to each other a few years ago about Warren's mutation, and they agreed to keep it a secret, not to tell anyone else. And so far, they had done a good job of keeping it under wraps as they were the only two who knew about it.

Suddenly, a knocking on the door got his attention. He quickly pulled the blanket off his bed and wrapped it around himself to hide his fully grown wings as he walked over and opened the door. It turned out to be one of his father many assistance.

"Warren, your father needs to talk to you. He says it's important."

He nodded.

"Tell him I'll be there in a minute."

After getting dressed, Warren entered his father's office and saw him talking with a woman he recognized as Dr. Kavita Rao. Worthington then looked over at his son and smiled.

"How are you son? Did you sleep alright?"

"What did you need to see me about, dad?" Warren asked, ignoring the question.

"You remember Dr. Rao, don't you?"

He looked to the doctor and nodded.

"Yeah, your company deals in pharmaceutical advancement right?"

"Yes." Kavita smiled. "We try to help people. We've created new and more advanced vaccines for sick people, and-"

"Warren, over the past year she's been developing a sore of cure…for mutants." Worthington interrupted. "And I've decided to start funding it."

Warren's brows furrowed as he looked from his dad to Kavita.

"What kind of a cure?"

"A cure that will be able to suppress the mutant X-Gene…permanently."


	2. The Danger Room

XXXXXX

The city of Manhattan is in ruins. Fires light the night sky: buildings, cars, nearly everything has been lit aflame. An explosion goes off and a huge fireball goes upwards towards the sky.

Iceman and Rogue charge into frame, pursued by an unseen assailant.

"This way!" Iceman shouted, as he took his girlfriend's hand. Suddenly another explosion went off, sending debris at them. Iceman quickly forms an ice shield, protecting the both of them. As the rubble bounced harmlessly off the thick ice, Rogue looked around and noticed that someone wasn't with them.

"Where's Peter?"

Iceman too looked around but didn't see him.

"I don't know, we must have got split up."

Elsewhere, Civilians are running in between the burning houses trying to get away when they start disappearing into blue puffs of smoke. Nightcrawler is teleporting them to the safety of a steel bunker. As he did, Colossus ripped off the door of a car, freeing two people trapped inside.

Colossus looked around for the sign of others when he heard the voice of Storm in his earpiece.

"You guys need to hurry, you're running out of time."

However, the message from Storm made him oblivious to a missile headed straight for him.

BAMF!

Nightcrawler quickly teleported Colossus out of the way just before the missile strikes causing a large explosion. Colossus gasped when he realizes what just happened.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

Elsewhere, Iceman was freezing incoming missiles headed for him and Rogue. Running out from behind a damaged car, Rogue attempted to run to the next place but tripped over something and fell to the ground. As she looked up, to her surprise, Logan was standing over her.

"Logan? What are you doing here?"

"Enjoying the scenery. You?"

Logan then took Rogue's hand and helped her up.

"How much time do you guys have?"

"Two minutes. Maybe less."

Logan shook his head.

"What the hell is she thinking?"

Storm's voice then came into Rogue's earpiece.

"What the hell is Logan doing there?"

"I don't know." Rogue responded as Logan walked up the hill by himself, not even flinching as a piece of debris went right past him. "I thought this session was just for us."

Rogue, Iceman, Colossus, and Nightcrawler then all met up with Logan. In the distance, they could hear the sound of the giant robots footsteps getting closer. They could see it's glowing eyes through the thick smoke and dust.

"It's getting closer!" Iceman yelled.

Logan then looked over at Colossus.

"Hey tin man, how good's your throwing arm?"

"It's decent. What do you have on your mind?"

SNIKT!

Logan's claws unearthed from his knuckles.

"Throw me."

"Damn it, Logan! You're not supposed to be involved!" Storm yelled. All the others could hear her voice in the earpieces and Colossus now appeared reluctant. Logan noticed his hesitation and narrowed his eyes.

"Do it. Now!"

Finally, Colossus grabbed the back of Logan's jacket, spun him around once and threw him as hard as he could up to the robot.

The rest of them could hear the sound of claws ripping metal to shreds and tearing through wires. Finally, the robot's head plops to the ground, Logan riding it all the way. He then leaped off and dusted his shoulders off.

"Class dismissed."

Suddenly, all the fires, the wreaked building and cars began to fade away, becoming the Danger Room, a massive hologram chamber.

The doors then opened and Storm walked in.

"Alright everyone. I saw a lot of potential from all of you. Unfortunately, due to some interference you were not able to make it to the time limit."

The X-Kids then looked at each other as Logan smirked.

"Now if you would excuse me, I would like a word with Logan."

Iceman, Rogue, Nightcrawler, and Colossus all walked out and once they were gone Storm rounded on Logan.

"What the hell was that?"

"Danger Room session." He sarcastically replied.

"You know what I mean. I'm trying to teach these kids something here!"

"I think I taught 'em something."

"It was a defensive exercise."

"Well, you know what they say—"

"No, I don't know what they say, Logan. This is a school, you can't just come and go as you please."

Logan then gave Storm a look.

"Hey, Ororo—I'm jus the sub. You gotta problem, talk to Scott."

He then walked around her and left the room. He took the elevator up to the third floor, where his bedroom was and just as he did, a door opened and Scott left his room with a bag in his hand.

"Well speak of the devil."

Logan then followed Scott down the hall.

"Hey, Scott!"

Scott continues on his way.

"What the hell happened to you? They're looking for you downstairs, you didn't show."

Scott turned to him.

"What's it to you?"

"For starters, I had to cover your ass."

"Well it's about time you did something around here. I didn't ask you to help." Scott responded.

"No, you didn't—the professor did. I was just passing through, and lucky for you I was."

"So pass through, Logan. It's what you do best."

Scott turned to begin walking again but Logan grabbed his arm.

"Hey!"

The other man turned to face him again.

"Look." Logan began slowly. "I know how you feel."

"Don't."

"When Jean died-"

Scott pulled his arm out of Logan's grip.

"I said don't." He growled.

They looked at each other in silence for a moment.

"Maybe it's time to move on."

Scott scoffed and then turned to leave again. Midway down the hall, he called over his shoulder;

"Not everybody heals as fast as you, Logan."


	3. Meet Beast

XXXXXX

It was going on 11:30 when students started filling out of the Professor's classroom, eager to start their weekend. Ororo's brows furrowed as she waited outside for all of them to exit. As soon as the last student, Kitty Pryde left, going though the wall instead of using the door as usual, she walked in.

"Professor?"

Xavier turned his wheelchair to face her.

"Yes, Ororo? What is it?"

"I believe that's the question I came to ask you. It's been three days in a row that you've been letting the kids out early, and not giving them homework. Is everything alright?"

Xavier smiled a little, touched by her concern.

"Everything is fine." He assured. "I'm just a little worried…about Scott."

"So he really is leaving?"

"I'm afraid so."

The two of them left the classroom and headed to the foyer of the mansion. Standing by the front door was the leader of the X-Men, putting on his jacket, looking like he was getting ready to head out.

"Scott?" Xavier said.

Scott stopped and turned to look at them.

"You weren't thinking about leaving without saying goodbye to us were you?" Ororo smiled.

Scott smiled back.

"I wouldn't dream of it."

He approached her and pulled Ororo into a tight hug. After a minute, they let go of each other and Scott took a deep breath.

"Look, I know I'm leaving you with a heavy burden."

"It's no burden-" Ororo began, but he cut her off.

"Yes it is. I'm sorry that you have to train the kids on your own, but I know you're capable of leading the team. I wouldn't be leaving if I didn't think you could do it."

"I appreciate that, Scott."

Xavier then spoke.

"Scott you do realize that if you ever need anything, we'll be here for you."

"Of course."

"You'll always be welcome here."

Scott smiled and leaned down to hug the Professor.

"Goodbye, Professor. Thank you for everything."

"Thank you, Scott."

Scott then gave one last look at them before finally turning to open the door and head out. A few moments later, Xavier and Ororo could hear the sound of a car speeding away from the institute. Ororo then sighed heavily.

"I know it sounds selfish, but I really wish he was staying."

"I know." Xavier said.

"It's just, I really don't know if I can handle this myself. Leading the team, getting the others ready. It is a big responsibility."

"But Scott is right, you are capable. And I fear that if he doesn't get away from this place now, he may never be ready to lead the team again. He's taken Jean's death so hard."

"She was a great friend, my best friend. But with all due respect, Professor, Jean's death has affected us all."

"But some more than others, Scott is a changed man, and Logan…I'm afraid he's getting ready to leave again."

"You're surprised? I didn't think he'd stick around for this long."

"Because we're going to be so short staffed, I was hoping he'd stay this time."

"Some things are out of your control, Logan is a loner, no matter how much we want him to stay he never will." Ororo replied, she gave him a warm smile in an effort to comfort him. Unbeknownst to them, right down the hall, Logan was standing there and heard every word they said.

XXXXXX

Down in Washington D.C, a news building was getting ready for a national televised debate. As the audience came in and cameras got ready, Senator Graydon Creed walked onto the set and sat down at one end of a table.

Meanwhile, in a dressing room, Henry McCoy was hanging upside down on the ceiling while reading a magazine. The producer of the event, Alicia Vargas then entered the room.

"Dr. McCoy, we're ready for you now."

Henry dropped down to the floor, landing neatly and his feet and smiled.

"Thank you, Mrs. Vargas."

Meanwhile, back at the mansion, Bobby and Rogue walked into the student lounge to see many of the kids gathered around the big screen television. Bobby was curious to see what they were watching and saw it was a some political thing.

"Hey, change this crap." Bobby said. "Who watches C-SPAN?"

"Be quiet." Peter responded. "Dr. McCoy is on today."

That peaked Bobby's interest.

"Really?"

"Who's Dr. McCoy?" Rogue asked.

"He was a teacher here, he left before you came around. He went to Washington to fight for mutant's rights."

They all then got silent as the debate started. Henry was sitting across the Senator from Delaware, who was beginning to speak.

"Do you know the threat mutants pose on us?" Graydon asked.

"They pose the same amount of potential threat as any other human would." Hank responded.

"Are you sure about that?" Graydon responded. "Just a few weeks ago in Illinois 140 elementary school children were killed, vaporized, because of the presence of a young seven year old boy, a mutant of course."

The Senator then he looked around at the audience of men and women, all of them in awe at the information.

"Are you telling me, sir, that these people have the same potential danger as any other human?"

"He's just a boy." Hank said calmly. "He didn't know what he was doing. It was probably the first time his mutation manifested itself."

"What about the mutant terrorist, Magneto? Remember what he tried to do at Liberty Island not too long ago?"

"You must understand that we are not all like that. In fact, the reason Magneto's plan failed was due to the interference of mutants."

"Maybe you're right." Graydon said. "But over here I have a report on mortalities and injuries related to mutants" He spoke aloud as he held a heavy file over his head. He put it on the podium and read aloud "Says here mortality rate has increased by 56 percent over the last decade. Annually 142,000 are killed due to mutants. In my opinion this is quickly becoming humanity's epidemic!" He shouted out. "We can act now or never, but now is the time to make a difference!"

People around the room clapped their hands together, the majority stood up to applaud the Senator as Hank lowered his eyes.

Back at the school, Bobby turned away from the television as the others continued to watch. Rogue noticed and quickly went after him.

"Bobby!"

Bobby didn't stop so Rogue had to jog to get right next to him.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

"I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine. Did what that guy say upset you?"

"I really don't want to talk about it." Bobby sighed as continued his way to the elevator.

"Why?"

Rogue reached out and gently grabbed Bobby's hand, taking it into one of her gloved ones making him turn around.

"Remember how close we were before Alkali Lake? You use to tell me everything, now we hardly talk at all."

Bobby smiled and looks down at his hand in hers.

"Look…I just, want to be alone right now."

He gently took his hand back and got into the elevator. Rogue frowned as the doors closed before slowly turning around and heading back to the lounge.


	4. The Secretary of Mutant Affairs

XXXXXX

Walking back to the dressing room after the debate was over, Hank took a deep breath as he ran his hand through his mane of blue furry hair, he had accomplished far less than he had hoped. How long did he have to keep saying the same thing until finally somebody heard him? Being a mutant activist certainly wasn't easy, but despite everything he had continued throughout the years.

"Dr. McCoy." Alicia knocked on the door to get his attention.

"Yes?"

"Telephone for you."

"Can you take a message?" Hank said, not really in the mood to speak with anyone right now.

"They say it's from the White House."

Hank looked back at her.

"Is this some kind of a joke?"

It was not a joke. The caller asked if Hank could come down to the White House as soon as possible for a meeting with President McKenna. When he jumped into his car, he wanted to speed down there as fast as possible but managed to get a hold of himself. When he reached the building, security escorted him inside and took him straight to the Oval Office.

"Mr. President." The Secret Service man said as he knocked on the door. "Henry McCoy has arrived.

The President got to his feet as he walked over to shake his hand.

"Dr. McCoy, thank you for meeting me on such short notice."

"It's no problem at all, Mr. President."

"Please, have a seat."

Hank took a seat across from the President's desk as McKenna walked over and sat down as well.

"I must admit, I'm rather shocked to be sitting in front of you right now." Hank spoke.

"Dr. McCoy, I'm going to get right to the point here." President McKenna began. "Ever since my re-election, the people have been crying out for a solution to this mutant…situation."

Smiling a little, Hank appreciated the President using a different word instead of 'problem.'

"Well, I have been hearing about possible reintroduction of the Mutant Registration Act, and I have to tell you, Mr. President, I think that is the wrong way to go." Hank responded.

"I agree with you. But mutants are an issue that needs special attention. That's why I've decided to create a mutant's division in my cabinet. A special division that will focus on the mistreatment of mutants, getting mutants help with their powers, and bringing mutant fugitives, like Magneto to justice."

"Mr. President, that's sounds like a terrific idea."

"I'm glad you think so." The President said. "And like all divisions in the cabinet, we need a secretary, like the Secretary of Defense and Secretary of the Treasury. And I was wondering, if you would like to be the Secretary of Mutant Affairs."

Hank stared at the President, stunned at what he had just heard. Did President McKenna actually just offer him a spot in his cabinet?

"Me?"

"Yes."

"I'm flattered." Hank finally said. "I course, I accept. But if I may ask, why me?"

"Well, with all due respect, I think it's fairly obvious that you're a mutant." President McKenna responded. "For this to work, mutants out there need to know this is for real, and you've been on television plenty of times for people to know who you are."

"Mr. President, I'm ready to begin as soon as possible. When do I start?"

"Immediately. In fact, there is one person already eager to join the staff. Senator Robert Kelly has a lot of interest in working with you."

Hank slowly looked up at the President.

"Senator Kelly?"

"Yes. You know who he is right."

"Mr. President, there is something you need to know about Senator Kelly."

While Hank continued to talk with the President, back at the mansion Rogue was walking through the halls and was about to head to her room as she passed through on of the open doors and saw Logan sitting on his bed, a beer in hand as he just stared ahead at the wall. She stared at him for a moment before speaking to get his attention.

"Hey." Rogue said as she walked in. "What are you still doing here?"

Logan raised an eyebrow as he turned his head to look at her.

"Surprised?"

"A little." She admitted. "I through you where heading out again."

Logan shrugged.

"I thought I might stick around for a little while longer."

"Oh yeah? What are you gonna do?"

"Well, I overheard the Professor say that this place was gonna be short staffed now that Scott has gone so I-"

"What? You're gonna teach?"

Rogue started laughing when she pictured Logan standing by a blackboard with a pointer in hand. Even Logan chuckled a little before he took another sip out of his bottle. Then, the laughter stopped and Rogue looked back at him, a question on mind.

"Can we talk?" she asked, in a quiet voice with the subdued Southern drawl.

"Sure. What about?"

Rogue sighed.

"Bobby and me, we're…we're not talking like we used to. Not since John left. I think he blames himself for him going with Magneto. John thought he was never really one of us." Rogue then started thinking about what he did to the cops at Boston. "Maybe he was right."

"You, Bobby, and John. Had to be an odd man out." Logan then took a deep breath. "Rogue, nobody likes to hear this, but people grow apart, especially young people."

"Like you remember being young."

Rogue then made a wry little smile at Logan, the smile you make at sassing out someone that isn't there and could kick your ass without breathing hard.

"Are you and Bobby…are you happy?" Logan asked.

"We're very happy." Rogue assured him.

"Good." Logan said with a nod. "That's good. You hold onto him. You let him know how you feel."

Rogue smiled as she got up and headed for the door.

"Thanks Logan."

"Don't mention it."


	5. Raven Is My Slave Name

XXXXXX

A Blackhawk helicopter flies past, overlooking the San FranciscoBay and hovering above the splendor that is the Golden GateBridge, iridescent in the morning's sunny glare. Inside, Senator Kelly sits, gazing down at the ocean with two escorts sitting with him.

The helicopter approaches AlcatrazIsland where General Steven Lang stands, two bodyguard personnel at opposite sides of him as the helicopter lands and Kelly exits, rushing forward with his head low until he was a safe way away from the spinning helicopter blades.

"Thank you for meeting me in person, General." Senator Kelly said as he shook the General's hand.

Lang nodded.

"This way."

He then lead the Senator indoors to the facility. Inside the Alcatraz prison Lang and Kelly walked inside a laboratory in the building were people in white coats were working.

"In conjunction with Worthington Labs, this facility acts as a warehouse to further authenticate the cure serum." Lang began.

"Last I heard this was still being used as a prison." Kelly responded.

"For mutants. Criminals, basically. Ones we've managed to catch."

Kelly eyed Lang.

"We're in full accordance with your committee's guidelines, Senator. President McKenna himself approved of this."

"Very well. Show me more."

"We use these subjects to test the cure serum. It is within these mutants that we've been able to appropriate the right antibody."

Kelly looked down upon them, his reaction aghast. He promptly veils it as he continued to give the other man a dirty look.

"What is the origin of the serum?"

"Worthington Labs extracts blood samples from one of their own mutant subjects." Lang responded. "It was how they were able to replicate it."

"And that is where the subject is held?"

"Yes."

Suddenly, one of Lang's bodyguards got a message in his earpiece. After hearing it, he quickly went to Lang's side and whispered something in his ear.

"Senator." Lang said as his eyes narrowed. "If you'd come this way, I would like to show you something else."

"The mutant prisoners?"

"Please come this way."

"Very well."

Senator Kelly walked forward when one of the bodyguards pulled out a tranquilizer gun and fired. The dart hit the back of Senator Kelly's neck and he stumbled forward before pulling it out and spinning around in shock.

Kelly's eyes turned yellow as his legs began to give out, and finally he collapsed to the floor.

XXXXXX

The lights opened suddenly, temporarily blinding her. Raven Darkholme better known as the mutant terrorist Mystique sat before a man in his late forties.

Mystique looked down at herself and saw that her hands were cuffed behind her back. She was being kept in an interrogation room inside the Alcatraz prison. It took her a few seconds to fathom what was actually occurring as the man sitting in front of her began to speak.

"Raven Darkholme." The Agent began. "You've been impersonating a government official to get into high security places you don't belong. That's called fraud, you know. Where is the real Senator Robert Kelly?"

Mystique didn't respond.

The Agent then opened a file and began to look through it.

"You've been pretty busy of the last few months. Attacks in London, Geneva, Alberta. A lot of people were killed. Does that make you feel like you are accomplishing something?"

Again, Mystique said nothing.

"Where is Magneto?"

Mystique lowered her, ignoring the question. The agent leaned forward.

"Raven, I asked you a question."

"I don't answer to my slave name." Mystique finally said.

"Raven Darkholme, that's your real name isn't it. You had a family once…or has he convinced you otherwise?"

Mystique finally looked up and glared at the agent.

"My family tried to kill me, you pathetic meat sack."

The agent sighs.

"Okay…Mystique. Where is he?"

Mystique then morphs into Magneto.

"In here. With us."

"Look, I don't want to play games with you. I want answers."

She turns into the agent.

"You don't want to play games with me?"

"Raven stop this!" The agent yells, getting frustrated.

Mystique turns into her normal self and smirked.

"Look at me, you're going to tell me where Magneto is!"

"Really? And how the hell are you going to get me to do that?" Mystique questioned.

"Take her away, do whatever you can to make her speak!" The Agent yelled.

Mystique looked around the dim lighted room as the door then opened and four guards approached her. They bared of heavy bullet proof protection and a type of gun in their hands.

In a split second she jumped up, kicking the chair back. Knocking one guard down, she spun around and kicked one in the face. In a perfect flip she had already grabbed the interrogator. A guard ran toward her but with cunning speed she sweep kicked him, and in a blink of an eye the heel of her foot was on the interrogator's throat, as he leaned against the wall.

"Move away from him slowly!" The guard yelled.

"I don't think so!" Mystique yelled back.

"Get away from him!" More guards entered the room.

They aimed their guns but didn't shoot.

"Move away from the man or we'll shoot." They threatened.

"Shoot me and he dies, along with me!" Mystique said as she pressed her heel further down his throat.

"Shoot!" Yelled an officer.

Mystique clasped her heel on the man's throat, crushing it instantly as she felt a sharp pain through her chest and neck. She instantly collapsed to the ground, and pulled out yet another tranquilizer dart from her neck. Mystique fell asleep as the guards quickly took her away.


	6. Uncovering Information

XXXXXX

"Hank, good news." President McKenna smiled as he entered the Situation Room with a smile on his face. "We've got her."

Hank smiled back.

"That's great, Mr. President."

"Not bad for you're first day of work." The President said as he shook Hank's hand. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you know that Mystique was impersonating Senator Kelly?"

"Well…let's just say I have my sources."

"I see."

"Did we find out why Mystique was there in the first place?"

"Unfortunately, no. She was interrogated but it didn't go so well. Not only did they not get any information, but she managed to kill a federal agent."

"I have to say I'm not surprised. I don't think you're going to get any information out of her unless you decide to go to the extreme."

"Well, the United States does not torture its civilians, mutant terrorist or not." The President responded as he took a seat at the long desk. Hank took a seat in front of him. "And although she didn't say, we have a pretty good idea what she was there for."

"And that is?" Hank asked.

The President slid a file in front of the blue mutant.

"We've received intelligence that a company, Worthington Industries is developing some kind on vaccine."

"What kind of vaccine?" Hank asked as he opened the folder.

The President remained silent as Hank read what was in it. After a few moments, Hank's eyes widened as got to the part about Dr. Kavita Rao, and her "Project Hope."

"My god." He gasped. "Is this viable?"

"We believe it is, yes."

"But it's not possible...it's just not possible."

"Hank, whether this true or not, I want your full attention on it." President McKenna began. "We've already begun hiring some staff for you and an office building is began built downtown."

"Mr. President…was this the reason you decided to give me a job in your cabinet?" Hank asked. "Because, you know the level of impact this will have on the mutant community if this is true."

"In part, yes." McKenna admitted.

"Well, I need to go up to New York." Hank said as he got to his feet. "Just for a little while to talk with some people."

"Why New York?"

"Let's just say, my sources are going to want to know about this."

"How long will you be gone?"

"Two days, tops."

"Alright." The President agreed. "But remember what your job is."

XXXXXX

Inside the mansion sub-complex, Storm had just finished putting her uniform on and walked into the hall when a voice got her attention.

"Preparing for another Danger Room session?"

Storm turned her head and saw Logan standing against the wall, a smirk on his face.

"Logan? You're still here."

"Yeah, I've decided to stick around. For a little while, anyway."

"What for?"

"I know you need to get the others ready…and with Scott gone I figured that maybe I could help."

"You want to help?"

"I've been fighting all my life. I'm not much good at anything else, I think I could teach them all a thing or two."

Storm then sighed a little as she looked down at the floor.

"What's that look?" Logan asked.

"Logan." Storm began. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad you're staying, but you're not exactly a team player. You don't follow orders, you don't use team work-"

"So what? You can't always depend on the team for help."

"The reason this team has worked is because we all know that out there, we can rely on each other." Storm said. "If you're going to be with us, then _be_ with us."

That was the last thing said between them as Iceman, Rogue, Nightcrawler, and Colossus came down the hall, all with uniforms on. Logan was the only one without one on.

"If we're all ready, let's head in." Storm said.

The six of them walked into the large, round, metallic room and the door closed behind them. As the all got ready, Rogue walked over to Logan.

"Logan, I was just thinking…is there any reason for me to be here? Training with all of you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if we were to ever go on a mission…what good can I do? With the kind of powers that I have?"

"Rogue…you can do a lot more than you think."

Before Rogue could say anything more, the lights turned off for a second, as they all looked around. The room began to change its size, its shape, its color, and soon they found themselves in the middle of an empty street, though they had not left the room. A gigantic robot appeared behind a building, lifting its massive hand towards them.

"Mutants, surrender or be exterminated," said the hollow metallic voice of the gigantic robot.

"Great…robots, again." Logan said as he rolled his eyes.

Iceman lifted up his arms towards the robot and released a wave of frost that collided with the robot's hand. However, that did little as an explosion went off after a missile was fired.

Two more missiles were fired at the team. Iceman went to grab Rogue's hand, but to his surprise, she began running with Logan instead. A large fireball went off and Logan grabbed Rogue around the waist and turned himself around as the fire came near them, protecting her from the heat.

In his distraction, a second robot appeared and fired more missiles. Nightcrawler teleported Storm out of the way while Colossus metaled up, and the rubble from the debris shattered upon impact, leaving him unharmed.

They all then meet up on a hill.

"Nightcrawler, Iceman, take the left with Logan." Storm instructed. "Rogue, Colossus, you're with me."

To her surprise, Logan did what he was told without any argument. Iceman froze the robot's feet, stopping it in it's place as Nightcrawler teleported Logan up to it's head. Logan finished off the robot by slicing his claws through its 'brain.'

The other group approached the second robot. Storm held out a hand for Rogue to touch. Rogue looked at her in confusion.

"Absorb some of my power, Rogue." Storm instructed.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Reluctantly, Rogue tore off one her gloves and touched Storm's hand for a brief moment. Suddenly, she began to levitate high off the air.

She looked over and saw that Storm was flying right next to her. Feeling the power, Rogue held out her hands and fired a lightning bolt at the robot. Storm did the same and together, they electrocuted it. Colossus stopped it from falling and threw it out of harm's way as the session came to an end.

"Good job, everyone." Storm smiled. "I think that might have been our best time yet."


	7. The Cure

XXXXXX

Though it is ostensibly afternoon, the sky is dark. Ororo Munroe was standing outside on the veranda, looking up to the sky, seemingly oblivious to it all. Kurt Wagner then slowly walked out to join her.

"The forecast vas for sunny skies."

Ororo turned and smiled when she saw him.

"Huh? Oh, sorry."

She looks up to the sky and her eyes go white. The clouds part, the sky returns to normal. Ororo then took a deep breath and looks back at Kurt.

"Sometimes I just lose track."

"Are you okay?"

"I was just thinking." Ororo began. "When I grew up, in Kenya, my powers were seen as a gift. But here, in the land of freedom, of tolerance, we hide our gifts in shame. You don't see a problem with that?"

"Vhy don't ve talk inside?"

He gently took her arm and the two of them walked back inside the building and head through the hall, students all about them.

"Vhat's bothering you?" Kurt asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't have to be psychic to know something's vrong."

"I just don't understand." Ororo sighed. "We live behind stone walls, keep our identities a secret, why are we still hiding?"

"Not by choice. Ve have to protect ourselves and our students, you know that."

"Protect them from what? Why are we still afraid?"

"Because their vill always be those vho hate and fear us, no matter vhat ve do."

"Yeah. And we continue to risk our lives for them."

"Ignorant people," Kurt said dismissively. "You shouldn't give them so much thought. And not everyone feels that way towards us."

The two stopped walking and stared at each other for a moment before a young voice got their attention.

"Ms. Munroe."

They both looked over and saw Jones and Artie standing there.

"What is it?"

"There's someone here to see you, he says is name is Henry McCoy."

In the study of the mansion, Henry was staring a picture on the wall. It was of him, Scott, Jean, and Ororo, all in their X-Men uniforms. It was taken years ago, right before he left. Suddenly, Ororo ran into the room.

"Hank!"

Henry spun around and laughed heartily.

"Ororo!"

The two of them hugged tightly as Kurt walked into the room. After they separated, Ororo motioned for Kurt to walk over.

"Kurt, this Henry McCoy. Hank, this is Kurt Wagner."

The two shook hands.

"Pleasure to meet you Kurt."

"Likewise."

Standing by the other doorway of the room, Logan stood, watching the reunion with a bemused look on his face.

"Who's the furball?"

Henry slowly turned his head to look at Logan.

"This is Hank McCoy. He was one of the first X-Men, Logan. Even before me." Ororo answered.

Suddenly, Xavier appeared and rolled his wheelchair into the room.

"I heard that we have company."

"Professor." Henry smiled.

He walked over and leaned down to give the Professor a light hug.

"It's nice to see you again, Henry."

"You too. Sorry for just springing in on you like this."

"It's no problem at all, Henry. You're apart of this place."

"How long are you staying?" Ororo asked.

"Unfortunately, not long. This is not a social call. I have news."

"Good or bad?"

"Both."

"Why don't we hear the good news first." Xavier suggested.

"The good news is, I've just come from a meeting with the President. After my television appearance, he asked to meet with me and offered me a job in his cabinet. And I accepted."

"Henry, that's great." Ororo said, almost in disbelief.

"It seems the President has become much more acceptant of mutant kind." Xavier said.

"What's the bad news?" Logan asked.

Hank sighed.

"The President gave me a report on something that a company called Worthington Industries is working on. It can supposedly suppress the mutant x-gene. They're calling it a cure."

Ororo looked to Xavier and they stared at each other for a moment, taking in the news before Ororo looked back at Henry.

"That's ridiculous. You can't cure being a mutant."

"Well, scientifically speaking—" Henry began.

"What is there to "cure", Henry?"

"Ororo."

Xavier looked towards the television.

"They're announcing it now."

Meanwhile, Bobby and Rogue walked into the student lounge and sat down on the couch, in front of the television. Bobby kept turning the channels until he reached a news broadcast and a reporter began speaking.

"We are now about to go to Warren Worthington Senior, who has made a breakthrough discovery about a possible cure for mutation."

Bobby and Rogue look at each other before turning their attention back to the screen. The broadcast cuts to a shot of outside Worthington Industries.

Warren Worthington Senior stood at a podium. Seated to his left was Dr. Kavita Rao. He began to speak.

"They've been called saints and sinners. They've committed atrocities, and been the victims of atrocities themselves. They've been labeled monsters, and not without reason. But these so-called monsters are people, just like us. And we want to help them. Dr. Rao."

Kavita stood and takes the podium.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thanks to generous funding of Mr. Worthington, I and my team at Rao Labs have made a breakthrough discovery. Like Mr. Worthington has told you, mutants are people. People like us. People with a disease. The mutant gene is nothing more than a corruption of healthy cellular activity."

Rogue continued watching the television with other students.

"Ladies and gentlemen…we have found hope."

Rogue's gaze intensifies.

"Finally, we have a cure."

In the study, Ororo and Henry were sitting down on the couch, just finishing watching the same broadcast. Logan sat on the desk, Kurt stood in the corner. They all were quiet for a moment before Ororo finally spoke.

"A 'disease'? Since where are we a disease?"

"Bet our government boy knows all about it." Logan said.

"I can assure you, the government had nothing to do with this. Worthington Industries is a private venture." Henry responded.

"Who would want this cure, anyway? What kind of coward would give up their powers just to fit in?"

"I understand your concerns, Ororo, for God's sake, it's why I'm here. But not all of us have such an easy time fitting in as you, you know. You don't shed on the furniture."

Ororo closed her eyes.

"Oh…I'm sorry, Hank. It's just—"

"Believe me, I understand." Xavier spoke up. "Forget the personal crises—this is a veritable Pandora's box. I'm not so worried about what the cure can do, as I am about what the government can do with it."

Rogue suddenly ran into the room.

"Hey! Is it true? They can cure us?"

"Yes, it appears to be true, Rogue." Xavier answered.

"No, Professor. It's not true." Ororo stood up and walked over towards Rogue. "They can't cure us because there's nothing wrong with us."

"I don't think you're qualified to make that statement, Ororo!" Hank himself got to his feet. "There are plenty of mutants who-"

"What do you want me to think, Hank? Our powers are part of who we are, for better or worse! It's part of our identities!"

"You think I want this to be part of my identity?"

Everyone in the room looked at Rogue.

"Sorry, Ms. Munroe, but if that's the case, you gotta think again. I don't care what you say. Something's wrong with me, and I wanna fix it. And it's my choice"

Logan frowned as Rogue slowly turned around and left the room.


	8. Last Chance

XXXXXX

How skillfully he slipped through the trees. How stealthily he stepped through the shadows. His black combat boots glided over the grass of the forest soundlessly as his eyes brightened as his target came into view.

Pyro pushed on a tree branch, opening up the door down to the underground hideout Magneto had designed for the Brotherhood. Inside was grey and metallic in look and texture. He walked down the stairs and went through a set of corridors until he finally came to a set of metal double-doors of Magneto's office. Inside, the leader of the Brotherhood was sitting quietly at his desk.

"They've just announced it." Pyro told him.

Magneto knew what the younger man was talking about but didn't respond. He just kept watching the clanging balls of Newton's cradle game on his desk.

"Have you gotten any word back from Mystique?"

"No." The older mutant finally spoke. "I'm afraid something has gone wrong."

"How could she have gotten caught? She can imitate anyone."

"We will have to go to San Francisco tonight." Magneto said as he stood up, ignoring the question. The plan always was to attack Alcatraz to free the mutants being held there, it just wasn't supposed to be this soon. "Save your strength, we'll attack late in the night, so not to risk interference from Charles."

"I don't understand something." Pyro began. "If the Professor is intent on always interfering in your plans why don't you just attack the mansion and get rid of him?"

"For the same reason you wouldn't turn against your old friends."

"Just say the word and Bobby's ash." Pyro growled. "Along with Rogue."

Magneto smiled a little. He clearly didn't believe the pyromaniac.

"Even now, despite everything that has happened between us, I still have far too much affection for the Professor to attack his very own home. Hopefully Pyro, the day will come when you and your friends will be reunited in a world free of humanity's prejudice."

"They aren't my friends."

Magneto ignored him and began to walk out of the office. He then called over his shoulder.

"Be ready at midnight."

While Magneto and Pyro readied their plan of attack, back at the Worthington building, after the press conference was over, Worthington Senior and Kavita walked down a long hallway of their large office building, making their way to the room of James "Jimmy" Hawkins. The mutant child who's DNA was responsible for the creation of the cure.

"I'm afraid we might have a little problem, Mr. Worthington." Kavita began.

"What is it?"

"I've just gotten word that the President has appointed a mutant to be part of his cabinet."

"So? What's the problem?"

"Well, we are keeping a mutant child here, and his powers are the focal point of the serum. The new appointee might insist on an investigation of the cure before we can release it to the public."

"We're not mistreating the child, and his father has been compensated very generously." Worthington responded. "We'll keep everything on schedule."

"Very well."

"Tonight we will test the cure on one of the mutant prisoners at Alcatraz. Just to be absolutely sure that the cure works."

The two of them then stopped outside a room with a viewing window. Worthington looked inside and saw his son playing video games with Jimmy.

"Your son has been keeping him company ever since you two arrived." Kavita said.

Inside, Warren and Jimmy were playing the new Burnout game on the Playstation.

"Ready to lose this time?" Warren asked, mockingly.

"Not on your life." Jimmy said in a sly tone.

"Are you saying you want me dead?"

Jimmy laughed as their cars crashed into each other on the screen.

"How much longer do you have to stay here?" Warren asked as he tried to maneuver his car around.

"I don't know. Not too much longer I hope. It's boring here."

"How did Dr. Rao find you anyway?"

"My dad works for her."

"Really?"

Jimmy nodded as his car again crashed into Warren's.

"Where were you before you were here?" Warren asked.

"At a school."

Warren looked over at Jimmy.

"What kind of school?"

He hated to ask, but what type of school would take Jimmy in? He was bald with bright green skin and yellow eyes. It was probably a miracle that he hadn't been attacked or even killed by some out of control mutant protestor.

"Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters." Jimmy finally answered. "It's a safe place for people like me."

Warren stared at the screen absent-mindedly. A safe place for mutants? He was about to ask another question when the door opened up and his father stuck his head in.

"Warren. We have to go."

He smiled a little as he put the controller down. He felt like he was ten years old again.

"Sorry." Warren apologized. "We'll play again when I visit. And I'll beat you next time."

"Oh please, I beat you three straight times." Jimmy smiled.

"I was just taking it easy on you."

Warrengrinned as he finally left the room to head back to the penthouse with his dad. However, back at Alcatraz inside one of the rooms was the President of the United States.

"Let me out of here! I demand that you release me!"

A guard rolled his eyes as he walked to the room where Mystique was being held. She was being kept on a table with metal clasps on her wrists and ankles. Except now, she had changed her appearance into that of President McKenna.

"Do you know who I am? I am the god damn President of the United States!"

"Mr. President…shut up!"

Suddenly, General Lang came down the hall with several more guards and one doctor at his side. The doctor had a needle and syringe in hand, containing a sample of the mutant cure. Warren Worthington Senior had requested that it be tested on a prisoner, and General Lang knew just which mutant to try it on.

"Raven Darkholme." General Lang began. "You have put the lives of thousands, if not millions in danger. You're going to answer all the questions I need from you."

Mystique sneered as she reverted back to her normal self.

"I'd rather die a fighter than a traitor."

"Do you think that's what the rest think about you? This Magneto, if he really cared for you or any other mutant he has worked with why hasn't he saved you or anyone of them?"

Mystique looked straight into Lang's eyes, his heart dropped, they were the most terrifying eyes he had ever seen, opaque and yellow, like a snake.

"Keep on trying your Sherlock crap and Ill kill you." She threatened coldly.

He took a deep breath.

"Look at me, you're going to tell me where Magneto is!" Lang demanded.

Mystique spat in his face.

"Go to hell."

General Lang glared at Mystique as he wiped the spit from his face. He turned around and nodded at the doctor. The doctor took the needle and stuck it into Mystique's arm, injecting her with the cure.


	9. Skating on the Pond

XXXXXX

Night fell and back at the mansion, Logan was in the second floor inside the gym. In addition to the Danger Room, the gym had weights and other equipment to train in hand to hand combat. Logan stood at a punching bag, hitting it as hard as he could. For some reason, at the moment, Striker was on his mind.

_"People don't change, Wolverine. You were an animal then, you're an animal now. I just gave you claws."_

Logan then unearthed his claws from his knuckles and stabbed the bag. He glared down at the floor as the insides of the bag spilled out when a voice got his attention.

"Excuse me."

He looked over and saw that Hank guy standing by the entrance.

"Am I bothering you?" Logan snapped.

"Not at all. I was just talking to the Professor, trying to catch up on things I missed in the few years I've been away." Hank began. "He told me a lot about you."

"Oh yeah?"

"He said you helped stop Magneto at Liberty Island. And you helped stop Stryker at AlkaliLake."

"Yeah, I did."

Logan walked over to the weight set and picked up a dumbbell.

"Very brave of you. I wish I could have been there, but I don't know if these old bones could handle that kind of thing anymore."

"How old are you?" Logan asked as he turned to look at him. It was hard to tell due to the blue fur that surrounded his face.

"Just turned fifty five. How about yourself?"

"Couldn't tell you, I don't remember."

Hank nodded.

"The Professor also told me that you're taking over for Scott."

"Not really." Logan said as he lifted the dumbbell. "I'm just helping getting the kids ready…and then…"

"What?" Hank asked.

"I don't know."

"Why don't you just stay here?"

Logan didn't respond, but that was what was bothering him. He'd been chasing after his past for so long, now that Striker had taken what he'd known about Logan to his grave he really didn't know what to do with himself.

"I don't know if I really belong here."

Wait? Did he just say that out loud?

"I can assure you, you do." Hank smiled.

Logan didn't get a chance to respond as Hank turned away and walked down to his room. Placing the dumbbell down, Logan went after him and called down the hall.

"Hey Hank! Want to have a beer?"

Hank turned around.

"Beer? We have beer here?"

Logan smirked. He talked to the Professor over it. At first he objected highly to it, but then they finally agreed on a compromise. That the case of beer would have a note pinned to it that read-'This is Logan's beer...I know your smell.' It worked like a charm.

"Now we do."

As Logan and Hank headed down to the kitchen, outside the mansion grounds, Rogue was sitting on a bench looking at the massive fountain before her. Bobby opened the door and walked outside, slowly approaching her from behind.

"Hey."

Rogue turned her head to look at him.

"Hey."

Bobby sat down next to her.

"I wonder why it's not snowing yet." Rogue began.

She then smiled.

"That's the only thing that I didn't like about Mississippi. Hardly ever snowed."

Rogue then got up and went to go back inside but Bobby's voice stopped her.

"Rogue wait! Can I talk to you for a minute?"

She turned back around, now looking a little upset.

"Oh, now you want to talk to me?

"Please, sit down."

She sighed but walked back over and sat down again on the bench.

"Listen." Bobby began. "I'm sorry that we haven't been spending that much time together lately."

"Why don't you just tell me what's wrong? Is it John?" Rogue asked.

"No…I just wish we could do something. Magneto's still out there somewhere."

"You mean _John_ is still out there somewhere."

"Yeah." He sighed.

"He made his choice." Rogue began. "And we made ours. I think we know who made the right choice."

"I don't want to hurt him, but…I want to do something. It's just frustrating, just sitting here."

"I know." Rogue agreed sympathetically. "But until we find out what Magneto's planning, there isn't much we can do."

Bobby nodded as they sat in silence for a moment. Finally, he decided to tell her what was really bothering him.

"Ever since we got back from AlkaliLake, I've been trying to get in touch with my parent's but they wouldn't return my calls."

"Oh."

"Sometimes I think I should have never of told them that I'm a mutant."

"No, you had to tell them eventually." Rogue insisted.

"Yeah." Bobby began. "I wanted to tell you that I'm going to Boston. I need to see them."

"When?"

"I'm taking a bus up there tomorrow morning, I'll probably be gone before you wake up."

He smiled a little and then put his hands together. After a moment, a ice rose was now in his hand and he reached out and placed it in Rogue's hand. She smiled, remembering the first day they met.

"We can fix what you were talking about, you know. About there being no snow."

"Oh really? An' when did you get the power burst, Mr. Drake?"

Bobby laughed.

"Just watch."

He gets up and puts his hand on the fountain, covering it in ice.

"Give me your feet."

"What?" Rogue laughed.

"Come on, give me your feet."

She sits on the edge of the fountain, and Bobby makes ice skates for her. He does the same to himself, and they begin skating. After skating around in a complete circle, Bobby spoke.

"Thinking about the cure?"

"I think we all are."

"But you're not actually thinking about taking it are you?"

Rogue took a deep breath.

"Do you know what it's like to kiss a boy-"

"I don't actually." Bobby interrupted.

The both laugh but the moment doesn't last long.

"I'm serious Bobby. I want to be able to touch people without worrying about killing them. A hug...a handshake...a kiss."

Bobby looked over at her.

"This isn't about me, is it?"

"No." Rogue responded while shaking her head. "It wouldn't be for you...it'd be for me."

They both look at each other silence for a moment before Rogue nearly trips but Bobby catches her and they both laugh. They then skate over to the fountain's edge and sat down. Rogue leans forward and kisses him lightly on the cheek, as lightly as possible, and breaths out ice.

"This was nice."

"I thought it could take our minds off things." Bobby said, while smiling at her.

Rogue smiled back.

"Good night, Bobby."

"Good night."

Taking off her shoes, Rogue got up and headed back inside the mansion with Bobby watching her the whole way. Once she was inside, he looked up towards the night sky and smiled.


	10. Storming Alcatraz

XXXXXX

Leaning down against the wall of her cell, Mystique wrapped her arms around her knees as she shivered. Her body temperature was drastically changing from hot to cold. She hugged herself, although it took up half of the little energy she had left. The room was pitch black, she couldn't even see her hand in front of her face. And she couldn't feel the scales on her skin anymore.

Meanwhile, a rush of late night traffic crosses The Golden Gate Bridge. Suddenly, several of the cars screech to a halt. Many drivers look around, panicked. Down at the end of the bridge, Magneto and Pyro begin walking down it, Magneto's hands outstretched. He magnetically parts the sea of cars, sending them crashing to either side of the bridge.

Citizens have now begun to leave their cars and run away. Magneto smirks for as he comes to a stop and then looks down to the end of the bridge. Extending his arms grandly, he focused all his power, and began to tear the bridge from the supporting cables and columns. Soon, the entire section of the bridge was free, and began floating forwards Alcatraz.

Troops rush up observation towers to get a better view, and react in astonishment as they see the bridge moving towards them. It moves over them, and some of the soldiers manage to run away before Magneto released his hold, and the bridge landed on the steep rocky shore of Alcatraz Island.

Inside the facility, General Lang followed a Sergeant into the surveillance room. He was concerned and in a hurry to see what had happened.

"Damn it, just tell me what's going on!" Lang yelled.

The cameras then showed what was left of the Golden GateBridge landing on the island and Lang's eyes widened, knowing there was only one mutant he knew of that was strong enough to do that.

"Get soldiers to the front of this facility!"

After hearing the order, the soldiers grabbed their guns and began rushing to the front of the complex. Magneto smirked when he saw them and looked back at Pyro.

"Follow my lead."

Magneto summoned a car from behind him and sends it into the air. Pyro sent a fireball up, turning the car into a grenade and it landed on a group of soldiers.

"Get back!"

Magneto sent two more cars up into the air with Pyro lit on fire. One hit an observation tower, the other crashed onto the ground, flipping twice before settling.

Lifting up three more cars, Magneto launched them forward as Pyro sent up three different jets of flame, lighting them all on fire. One of the cars actually stuck the facility itself. The power inside went off as one of the laboratories caught fire.

Sending up one more car, Magneto sent it flying at the island again. General Lang looked up as he came right at him, but before he could move out of the way or even scream it landed right on top of him, killing him instantly.

Feeling the damage was done, Magneto stepped off the bridge and onto the island. By this time the soldiers had recovered and began firing at him but he easily stopped them all and pushed back all the bullets, causing them to go back and pierce through the dozens of soldiers.

Walking towards the entrance, Magneto torn down the metal door and went in. He kept going until he was walking down a corridor filled with cells. He continued walking and with a simple nod, the cell doors began falling down one by one. Curious mutants slowly walked to the entrance of their cell, sticking their head out to see who had freed them.

Back outside, Pyro walked forward and before a soldier could have a chance to shot, he manipulated his deadly fire and scorched his body. He then noticed a tank of oxygen nearby the facility and sent a fireball at it, causing a huge explosion to go off before he made his way inside.

As he went in, a bunch of people in prisoner uniforms began running towards him.

"Get out of here." He ordered. "Go up the bridge."

As they began to pass him, he continued on trying to find Magneto. He soon found him staring at three holding cells right next to each other. But they weren't like the other ones he tore down, these were reinforced cells.

"These are the mutants that could be the most use to us." Magneto said as he handed Pyro a clipboard. "Why don't you read off the guest list?"

Pyro narrows his eyes briefly, then flips to the appropriate page as they approach a cell door.

"Prisoner 13433, James Madrox. Says he robbed seven banks."

Magneto ripped off the door magnetically, and Madrox steps out. And then six more step out.

"At the same time." Pyro finished.

"Impressive." Magneto said as he looked the other man over. "I could use a man of your talents."

"What I know, they know. What they learn, I learn." Madrox said as the other copies went away and it was just him standing there.

"If they're hurt, does it affect you?" Pyro asked.

Madrox didn't say anything and Magneto smiled.

"The invitation stands."

Madrox shrugged.

"I'm in."

"Welcome to the Brotherhood."

They continued on to the next cell as Pyro flipped the page of the clipboard.

"This one's Remy LeBeau. Has the ability to transform potential energy into kinetic energy. Another thief."

Magneto ripped the door off and a tall young man with red on black eyes and a thick mop of brown hair stepped out.

"Bonjour." Remy smirked. "You're Magneto right?"

Magneto and Pyro looked at each other for a moment before the older man nodded.

"Yes. We are building an army, Mr. LeBeau. Care to join?"

"I don't normally run with a group, monsieur."

He then took a second glance at Magneto.

"But why not?"

Pyro continues down the line.

"Check this out, says here 'subject mush remain confined at all times. If he builds any momentum, no object can stop him.' Calls himself the Juggernaut but was previously known as-"

"Cain Marko." Magneto interrupted.

"How do you know him?"

"He's Charles Xavier's stepbrother. I always wondered what happened to him."

Once again, he ripped the door down, revealing a towering mutant, maybe seven feet tall incased in bronze harmor and a bronze helmet.

"Hello, Cain." Magneto greeted. "Care to visit Charles again?"

"Get me out of this thing!" Cain shouted.

The fourth and final one Magneto figured had to be Mystique. Without anyone saying a word Magneto tore down the door. Inside, a woman was sitting on the floor with a ratty shirt, shorts, and no shoes. Mystique smiled as she realized he had come to save her, but it was too late.

A somber smile split her face. Her eyes were red, filled with tears. She was ashamed of her self. She looked, she was human, no longer a mutant. She was the inferior.

"Erik, you came to save me." She said in a soft, weak tone.

"Mystique?" He asked, confused. Then he realized what had happened. "No…not you."

"It's okay. The source of the cure is inside Worthington Industries." She revealed.

Magneto couldn't fathom what was going on. He turned his head and looked at the others.

"Leave us."

They slowly turned and when they were gone Magneto looked back at Mystique. She gave him a smile that broke his heart.

"Erik…I can't live like this."

"Its okay, there must be an antidote." He replied.

"Kill me." She begged. Tears still flowing down her ruby red cheeks.

"No, that's preposterous!" Magneto answered, angered by her command.

"Please I cant live like this. I'm filth, please Erik, finish it here. Just end it." Her voice was still frail, her eyes damp, dew drops accumulated on her rosy red cheeks.

Magneto looked deep into her blue eyes.

"If you really care for me, kill me."

Mystique was asking Magneto to do the task that she didn't have the guts to do herself.

He gave a heavy sigh.

"There has to be another way."

"There's no other way, this is how its meant to be. Please, Erik, you cant let me live like this, you cant." She sobbed, her words were smothered by her crying.

"I can't do it." He was surprised to say. He had killed thousands but couldn't kill the woman before him who asked him to kill her.

"Yes you can. Do it for me. Please, please just do it."

Taking a deep breath, he finally replied.

"Very well."

It was one of the hardest things he ever said. He looked at her and a sad smile came over her grief-stricken face. For a brief moment she was content but the moment was only brief

"Thank you, Erik." Mystique said her smile diminished, she cried softly.

"Im so sorry."

She looked at his face, one last time.

Magneto used his power to rip off the door handle and magnetically made it as sharp as possible. He then turned away.

"Erik," she whispered.

He paused.

"Goodbye."

Magneto closed his eyes. He heard a slashing sound behind him, Raven Darkholme let out her last breath of life. She collapsed on the floor, the metal she was stabbed with fell shortly after. Magneto stood there, not daring to see her lifeless body on the floor. All was silent, he took a deep breath and left the area.


	11. Family Reunion

XXXXXX

Waking up early the next morning in his father's penthouse apartment in the city, Warren got out of bed and extended his wings. The curtains in his room were drawn, no one was going to see.

His wings began to flap gently, and slowly he lifted off the ground and kept going up until his head reached the ceiling. Warren grinned as he looked down at the floor. He had done this only a couple of times ever since his wings had fully grown a few years ago.

However, he was only a couple of feet in the air. Warren could only imagine what it would be like to fly over New York. Suddenly, a knock on the door caused him to drop back to the floor.

"Just a second." He said as he folded his wings and pulled on his extra large shirt. Walking over to the door, he opened it to see that it was his father standing there.

"Good morning." Worthington greeted as he smiled at his son. "Can I come in?"

"Sure." Warren stepped back and his father walked into the room, shutting the door behind him.

"I have some good news." Worthington began as he took a seat on the leather recliner right next to the bed. "I just got confirmation that the cure works and it is safe to take. We'll have a sample ready for you this afternoon."

He then looked to the side for a moment, not bothering to tell his son about the attack on Alcatraz by a mutant.

"Oh." Warren said slowly, and then remembered. "Dad, I wanted to tell you something."

"Go ahead."

"I was talking to Jimmy the other day, and he told me that he use to go to a school…for mutants."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, he said the name was Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. I looked it up and it's only an hour away from here, in Westchester. And I was thinking…maybe…"

"Warren." Worthington began slowly, as if he knew what he was going to suggest next. "That's no place for you to be."

"Dad, all my life I've been sheltered because of this." Warren then stopped and sighed heavily. "I didn't go to public school, hell, I didn't even go to a private school, you hired a teacher to come here. It's like I've been living in a cave all my life. All because you're ashamed that I'm a mutant."

"I've never been ashamed of you." Worthington said as he got to his feet and put his hands on either side of Warren's shoulders. "I was just trying to protect you. After your mother died you were all I had left. I didn't want something to happen to you."

Warren smiled a little.

"I know."

"But we don't have to worry about that any more. Today it will all be over, from now on you'll be normal. All mutants out there will have the chance to be normal. And then one day I'll step down from this company and you'll take over."

"That's good." Warren said with false cheer as he looked down at the floor. His father then gave him a look.

"It is what you want, right?"

"Yes."

"Alright." Worthington then looked over at the clock. "Be ready around one o'clock."

Warren nodded as his father turned and walked out of the room. He then sighed heavily before sitting back down on the bed and putting his face in his hands.

XXXXXX

He had arrived at the house after getting off at the bus stop and was staring at the doorbell for what had to be ten minutes now. Bobby shook his head, he couldn't believe that he was actually afraid to walk into his own house.

Finally, he just rang the bell.

After a few moments of waiting, Madeline Drake answered the door and found herself staring into the eyes of her oldest son.

"Bobby." She said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I just thought I'd drop by." Bobby said nervously as he scratched the back of his neck. He honestly didn't know what to expect.

"Come on in." Madeline said as she opened the door further for him. "We were just about to have breakfast."

Bobby walked past the kitchen and into the dining room to see his father at the table, reading the paper with a plate full of bacon and eggs in front of him. He looked up from the paper and his eyes widened with the same surprise his mother had when he saw him.

"Bobby." William Drake greeted as he got up. "I didn't know you were visiting."

"Yeah, it was kind of a last minute thing."

"Well, sit down."

"How have you guys been since, huh-" Bobby was about to mention the last time he was here, but didn't know if he should bring it up or not.

"Everything's been fine." Madeline answered as she brought in a plate of food for him and sat it down on the table. Bobby smiled a little as she sat down. At the moment, it felt like a normal family breakfast, like the ones he used to have before he left for Xavier's.

"What about Ronny? Where is he?"

"He stayed over at a friend's last night. He's fine too, doing real good in school."

It seemed like no one knew what to say after that and Bobby then sighed heavily. He didn't want to bring it up, but he couldn't pretend that it didn't happen. The neighborhood he grew up in was a quiet suburbia that got disrupted because of his last visit, and he needed to know how they felt towards him now...even if it might hurt.

"Guys...do you still want me here?"

"What do you mean?" William asked before picking up his cup of coffee.

"You know."

Madeline sighed.

"Bobby, I think it'd be best if we just not talk about it."

"No, I want to know."

William and Madeline looked at each other for a moment before he answered.

"Of course we do. You're still our son, we told you that already."

Bobby smiled and nodded.

"What happened to that boy?"

"What boy?" Bobby asked.

"The boy who blew up the cop cars."

"I'm sorry about that."

"Was he ever arrested?" Madeline asked.

"It's a long story." He responded.

"Well, like I said let's just forget about it."

Bobby smiled but before he could say anything he heard the sound of the front door opening and closing. He then heard a familiar voice.

"I'm home!"

"Ronny, guess who's here." Madeline said.

"Who?"

Ronny then walked into the kitchen only to stop in his tracks when he saw Bobby. The two of them stared at each other in silence for a moment before Ronny turned around and headed for the stairs.

"Ronny, come back here." William yelled but his youngest son ignored him.

Bobby then got to his feet.

"Bobby, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to make sure he doesn't call the cops again."

Bobby headed up the steps and kept going until he reached his brothers room.

"Ronny."

Turning his head, Ronny glared at his older brother.

"What do you want?"

"I just wanted to make sure you didn't call the police like last time."

"I'm not sorry for doing it."

"I wouldn't expect you to be. Jealousy does nasty things to people."

"What?" Ronny responded, outraged. "I am not jealous of you!"

"Really?" Bobby leaned against the doorway. "Cause I thought after that little power display you definitely seemed a little jealous."

"I wasn't jealous! I was freaked out!"

"Whatever. It doesn't really matter what you think because mom and dad are fine with it."

"They're not." Ronny said.

"They are. If they weren't, how come they're not treating me any different?"

His younger brother than gave him a look.

"Because they just announced they found a cure for mutation."


	12. Magneto Plots

XXXXXX

Continuing to stare at his younger brother, it just hit Bobby right then and there about that press conference on television a few days ago, where that scientist told the whole world that she discovered a cure for mutation. He didn't even bother addressing Ronny again as he turned around and headed back down the stairs.

Madeline then came back into view as she carried the dishes to the kitchen sink.

"Oh, Bobby. Are you done eating?"

"Mom…how come you never returned any of my calls?"

"What do you mean?"

Just then, William walked into the room as well.

"I tried calling you guys when I got back to school. For two months now. Don't tell me you didn't notice."

Madeline then looked to her husband and he answered for her.

"Bobby, do you have any idea what we went through after you left?" William asked.

"No."

"The police came back here, wanting more information about that boy who had attacked them. Of course we didn't know anything, but they didn't believe us, so they kept harassing us. The story about the attack was on the news, in the local paper. And naturally our friends and neighbors were curious as to why a mutant was at our house in the first place. You know we actually thought about moving because of all this."

"So if you decided to move, were you gonna tell me?" Bobby asked, now upset.

"Bobby…" Madeline began.

"So why let me in the house today? Why not kick me out, why have you been treating me normal?"

They didn't get a chance to answer.

"It's because you think I'm going to take the cure, isn't it?"

Madeline looked at her son in surprise.

"You're not?"

Bobby had to stop his jaw from dropping.

"You actually want me to take it?"

"Honey…"

"You could be normal again." William interrupted. "Why wouldn't you want to take it?"

"Maybe because I like being a mutant, dad." Bobby snapped. "Did you ever think of that? I like that I'm different. I don't want to go back to being normal."

Bobby watched as his parents just looked at each other, both had looks of disappointment of their faces. He could only shake his head, they didn't understand.

"I'm out of here." Bobby said as he spun around and headed for the door.

"Bobby wait!" Madeline went after her son as he opened the door. "Listen, I guess we just assumed you'd take it because...I don't know."

"It's alright mom."

"Listen, I told you we still love you and we do. No matter what."

Bobby smiled a little.

"Thanks."

After that, he turned and continued out of the house. He closed the door behind him and walked down off the porch. He then stopped and took a deep breath before looking back at the house one last time, his family inside, knowing this may be the very last time he comes into contact with them.

XXXXXX

Pyro shifted in his seat on the train Magneto had commandeered last night after their attack on Alcatraz. Magneto stopped the train and they kicked everyone off except for the conductor, who Madrox held at gun point…or at least one copy of Madrox did. He flicked his shark lighter open and closed it as he looked out the window. He had no idea where they were now.

Across from him in another seat was that Remy guy they also helped break out shuffling a deck of cards. Again, Pyro flicked his lighter open and stared at the flame for a moment before closing it. He then did it again and Remy twitched visibly with annoyance.

"Can you stop that already?" Remy asked.

Pyro grinned and laughed.

"Nope."

Remy glared at Pyro before pulling out his metal staff. He gave it a slight charge and lightly hit Pyro's hand with it, causing the lighter to fly up into the air and Remy caught it and smirked.

"Mine now."

"Give it back."

Remy looked at him before flicking the lighter open and closed, mimicking Pyro.

"Hmm…nope. Don't think so."

Pyro got to his feet.

"Remy, give it to me now." He said through his teeth.

The other man also got to his feet.

"Come and get it."

After he said that, one of the cards in Remy's hand began to glow in a purple like flame as he charged it up. Pyro scoffed and looked down at the flaming card before winking. The card was then burned up completely and reduced to a small pile of ashes. Remy blinked in surprise.

"What the-"

In his distraction, Pyro snatched his lighter back before shoving Remy back down into his seat.

"Got anymore magic tricks up your sleeve?"

Remy glared up at him but didn't retaliate.

"What's so special about that thing anyway?" He then asked.

Pyro sighed as he looked down at it.

"A friend of mine gave it to me."

"So, where's this friend now?"

"It's in the past. He means nothing to me now."

"So why keep it?"

A look of surprise came over Pyro's face but he didn't have an answer. He then turned around and left the compartment in search for Magneto. He didn't have to look long as in the next section of the train stood the old man, looking out the window as Cain Marko stood next to him.

"I've kept up my end of the bargain, Cain." Magneto began. "I doubt you need much incentive to go after your brother."

"I told you already, Erik." Juggernaut responded. "I'm not Cain Marko anymore. My name is Juggernaut."

"Fine, Juggernaut. The X-Men will have no idea what you're with us. Soon, you will have the revenge you seek."

"You said you know exactly were he is, right?"

"Of course."

Juggernaut grinned before walking out of the compartment, passing Pyro along the way. Pyro looked up at him as Juggernaut narrowed his eyes. He was a dwarf compared to the other mutant's size.

"What was that about?" Pyro asked.

"What?"

"You're sending him after the Professor? I thought you were against attacking the mansion."

Magneto nodded.

"My boy…I'm afraid that things have changed."

Pyro just stared at the older man as he took a seat. He couldn't imagine how he felt right now. Last night, after the attack on Alcatraz he asked him what happened to Mystique. Magneto merely turned to him and said 'She's gone.' Magneto later revealed that they had used her like a lab rat to see if the cure worked or not.

"So...what's the plan?" Pyro finally asked.

"Now…the plan is to use this cure as a lightning rod to turn countless more mutants to our cause. We build an army…and destroy this cure at its very source."


	13. Infiltration

XXXXXX

Hank was standing in the study with Professor Xavier watching the television when they got word of the news. The Golden Gate Bridge, or what was left of it had been completely destroyed and all the mutant prisoners were broken out of Alcatraz Island. Xavier looked at the shots of the twisted metal, knowing that there was only one person who can have done that.

"I need to get back to Washington, Professor." Hank began. "I'm sure the President is going to want to see me, to figure out how to deal with this."

"I understand, Henry." Xavier responded.

"We should have expected something like this from Erik."

"Yes. No doubt he sees the cure as a weapon that will be used against mutants."

Hank took a deep breath.

"I can't stop thinking about it, Professor. I want to know. I want to know if this so called 'cure' will work or not. If it's safe for mutants to take."

"As do I."

"It's not that I don't trust the company that's developed it…I just want to know for myself. Before it's released to the public."

"Couldn't you request a sample?" Xavier asked. "With your new position in the President's cabinet there must be a way."

"I'm afraid I don't know how much power I have." Hank responded. "We never really got into that. And like I said, Worthington Industries is a private company, I don't know if can just go in and ask for a sample without a reason."

And idea then came to the Professor.

"Henry…I think I know a way to get you in there." Xavier began. "Without being detected."

"Oh yeah? How?"

Xavier smiled.

"I happen to know a little girl who can walk through walls."

As the Professor and Hank continued to talk, Logan was walking through the halls, trying to find the kids for their session today in the Danger Room when he finally came across Rogue in the student lounge, sitting by herself.

"Hey Rogue, where's Bobby? I can't find him anywhere."

"He left. To go visit his parents."

"When was this?"

"Early this morning."

"Well, come on, we've got a Danger Room session."

Rogue shook her head as she got to her feet.

"No, I'm not training today."

"Why not?"

"I'm just not in the mood, alright?"

She walked past him and headed for the stairs.

"Rogue! Hold on!" Logan yelled out as he went after her.

"What Logan? What do you want from me?" She asked, clearly upset.

"Okay, what's wrong with you?"

"It's nothing…I'm just really confused right now, okay."

"About what?"

"About everything, I just need to be alone right now."

"It's the cure isn't it?" Logan asked.

No answer came to his reply. Rogue just gave him a fake smile and turned back around, heading up the stairs as Logan sighed heavily.

"Logan! Have you found the others?" Ororo asked as she came down the hallway with Kurt at her side.

"Bobby's not here, Rogue doesn't want to train." Logan responded.

"Why? Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, the cure."

"Hey guys!"

The three of them looked over to see Peter Rasputin coming towards them.

"Have you seen the Professor? I went to his office but he's not there. I haven't seen Dr. McCoy anywhere either."

Logan shook his head.

"This team is starting to fall apart."

"Alright." Ororo began. "Kurt, why don't you come with me, we'll try to find everyone. Logan, why don't you just go ahead with Peter to the Danger Room?"

"One person?"

"It's better than nothing."

Ororo and Kurt went off while Logan looked back at Peter.

"Alright, let's go. Unless you're thinking about taking the cure too."

"Not at all."

"Good."

Logan then moved his neck around.

"I need a cigar."

XXXXXX

Pulling up next to the curb, Hank parked the Rolls Royce outside the Worthington Industries building in Manhattan as the Professor and Kitty Pryde sat in the backseat.

"This reminds me of the early days, Professor." Hank smiled. "When I use to drive you and Erik everywhere, remember?"

"How could I forget?"

Kitty then looked over at her teacher.

"Professor, I'm scared."

"Everything will be okay Kitty, I promise." Xavier smiled. "I wouldn't put you into harm's way."

Hank turned around to look in the backseat.

"Remember Kitty, just stay at my side. Nothing will happen, okay?"

Kitty nodded.

"Okay."

"Alright, let's go."

Getting out the car, Hank took the little girls hand as they made their way to the side of the building, knowing they couldn't go through the front even if Kitty could go through walls. Naturally, he got looks from people who stopped in the tracks when they saw him but he just kept moving.

Finally, they walked through the alley and they were standing at the side of the building.

"Anything I should know?" Hank asked.

"Nope. Just walk forward." Kitty smiled.

"Alright, let's go."

Hank took Kitty's hand and slowly, methodically, they phased right through the wall and inside the building. A strange jolt went through his body as he passed through the wall but when he realized they were both in, Hank quickly looked around and saw that they were in a bathroom.

"So far so good…"

They approached the bathroom door and were about to go through it but she stopped him.

"Wait, why don't I take a look first?" Kitty suggested.

Hank was then taken aback when Kitty phased her head out the door. After a second she pulled herself back in and looked at him.

"All clear."

Hank nodded and the two of them phased out of the bathroom and into the hall. Hank then saw a sign on the ceiling that read 'Main Lab' with an arrow pointing to the right.

"Come on."

They went down the hallway together and were about to turn the corner when they saw two men talking to each other coming their way, not paying any attention. Hank quickly swung himself around so before they saw him and phased through the wall behind him with Kitty.

They were now in some room and two men in white coats were working on something. Kitty gasped when she saw them and Hank pulled her down so they were crouched behind a desk. While leaning down he pulled her along until they phased through the opposite wall and now they were back in the hallway.

Hank stood up and was now face to face with a man wearing a pair of glasses, and looked to be in his late thirties. His eyes widened in shock when he laid eyes on the beast.

"Hey, you're not supposed to be in here!"

Balling up his fist, Hank reached back before leveling the man with a punch, knocking him out cold.

Putting his hands on her shoulders, Hank looked Kitty right in the eye.

"Stay here."

Kitty watched with her mouth open as Hank leaped forward and ran with cat-like speed on all fours, like a true animal to the door of the next room. He was breathtaking to behold, beyond agile, a blur of acrobatic blue fur.

Hank worked his way through the maze of equipment jumping over a couple of desks and finally entered the main lab where he snatched a sample of the cure.


	14. Angel's Cure

XXXXXX

As Kavita and her staff were getting ready, Worthington Senior was standing by the window inside the exam room, watching the cityscape as his assistant quickly ran into the room and spoke up to him.

"There appeared to be a break in just now, Mr. Worthington!"

"I can't deal with that right now." Worthington responded. "Today is a big day for my son. I'll handle it later."

A technician then called from the far side of the room;

"Mr. Worthington sir, he's arrived."

"Good. Bring him in."

Kavita walked over and lightly touched his arm.

"Are you sure you want to start with him?"

"I think it's important, yes."

She went off to prepare for the procedure as two orderlies brought Warren into the room. Warren seemed a little nervous as he looked around before his eyes settled on his father.

"Hello Warren." Kavita smiled.

Warren nodded as his father clasped him on his shoulders.

"I'm proud of you for doing this. You know that, don't you?"

He nodded again as he shrugged off his bulky overcoat, and then pulled his shirt over his head. A harness restrained his wings. The orderlies guide him to the restraining table, now in an upright position that will allow Warren to remain standing. Kavita approached him with a needle and syringe in hand.

"The transformation can be a little jarring."

Warren swallowed.

"Dad can we…can we talk about this for a second?"

"We already talked about it, son. We agreed."

Warren squirmed as Kavita swabbed his arm with alcohol.

"It'll all be over soon." Worthington finished.

"Wait, just wait a minute!"

Kavita looked up, taken slightly aback by Warren's outburst.

"Warren, just calm down. Relax, son."

"No…I don't want to do this."

Worthington ran over and joined the orderlies in trying to hold his son still.

"Do it quickly!"

"No! Stop!" Warren shouted.

He struggled, breaking the harness and restraints holding him back. His father and the orderlies fly away from him, and his wings extend to their full span. It was a magnificent sight, truly inspiring to behold. Everyone in the room freezes, even his father was speechless. Warren pants and looked towards him.

"It's a better life, Warren." Worthington finally said. "It's what you want."

"No, dad. It's what you want."

Seeing the orderlies blocking the door, Warren spun around to the glass windows and charged forward.

"Warren no!"

Warren crashed through the window, falling at first, and then flying. The people on the sidewalk look up as glass fragments explode from the side of the building.

They watched in awe as an angel soared over them.

Some cross themselves, others merely stare, but none of them will forget this moment. They shield their eyes as the angel disappears into the sky.

XXXXXX

"Katharine you did a wonderful job, I'm very proud of you."

Kitty smiled as she stood in the Professor's office as Xavier assured her that she did a good job in helping Henry get in and out of the building.

"Does this mean I get to be part of the X-Men, Professor?" The young girl asked.

Xavier laughed.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to wait a few more years, sorry."

"That's okay." Kitty then leaned forward and wrapped her slender arms around Xavier's neck, giving him a tight hug. Meanwhile, down in the infirmary of the mansion, Hank was finishing examining the sample of the cure he took when Logan suddenly appeared in the doorway. Hank looked up when he noticed him.

"Hello, Logan."

"Where have you been?"

"I snuck into Worthington Industries."

Logan raised an eyebrow, looking somewhat impressed.

"Really?"

"You're not the only one with animal instincts. Although I'm sure you've already guessed that, no?"

Logan then noticed the blue liquid inside the flask next to Hank that had the Worthington logo on it. He looked at the other mutant coldly.

"What is that?"

He didn't even have to ask. He knew what it was. It was the very thing that was on everyone's mind here at the school. It was the very thing that was tearing the team apart.

"It's nothing that may interest you." Hank responded.

"Why did you bring that here?"

"I had to examine it to see if it works."

"You too huh?" Logan asked as he walked further into the room. "You know I'm a little sick of hearing everyone complaining about this and that of being a mutant. So you think you have a disease too?"

"You have no idea what it's like." Hank said while shaking his head. "To be chased for simply trying to cross a street. Or having problems just…touching a woman. I'm a human being Logan, I have the right-"

"No, you're not." Logan gave a sarcastic laugh. "I think you should know that. Do you know how hard some kids around here are taking this? What kind of example do you think you'll set for them if they see a former X-Man take it?"

"I honesty don't know. Please just leave me alone."

Suddenly, Logan went straight for the flask but Hank grabbed him and forcefully pushed him against the wall.

"Logan, don't make me-"

"If you don't throw that crap down the drainpipe, I'll make you."

Ororo was going down the hall with the Professor when suddenly she heard the sound of glass breaking and equipment falling to the floor coming from the infirmary.

BANG!

She jumped back when Logan and Hank crashed through the door and into the hallway, throwing punches at each other.

"Enough!" Xavier shouted.

The two pulled away from each other, glaring at one another while taking deep breaths.

"What the hell were you two doing?" Ororo asked.

"He tried to throw away the sample of cure I took." Hank responded.

"You snuck into Worthington Industries?"

"I needed to know if it really worked."

"And does it?"

"On principal yes…but I can't be one hundred percent sure until it's tested on a mutant."

"And how are you going to do that?" Logan asked, sarcastically but Hank ignored him.

"Hank, I know what you've went through over the years." Ororo began as she helped him up. "But surely you aren't thinking about-"

"I need to be going now." Hank interrupted. "I'll be sure to contact you when I've finished my exam on the cure."

"Thank you, Henry." Xavier smiled.

Hank was about to turn away but looked one last time towards Logan.

"You're a mutant." Logan began. "Try not to forget, okay?"


	15. Getting Closer

XXXXXX

It was late in the afternoon by the time the bus Bobby took from Boston arrived in Westchester. As he walked through the gates of the school, he began thinking back to his parents, who wanted him to take the cure so he would be 'normal' again.

Before he left, his mother told him that they still loved him, no matter what. No matter what, he thought bitterly, like he had some kind of problem. Bobby was sure they probably did, but he knew deep down that his relationship with them would never be the same again.

Bobby walked in through the front door and walked to the staircase when he heard the sound of the television in the student lounge. Curiously, he walked over and saw Rogue sitting on the couch, watching some kind of news broadcast talking about the cure.

"Rogue." He said, getting her attention.

She looked over when she heard someone say her name and her eyes widened in surprise when she saw him. Rogue shut the television off and got up to greet him.

"Bobby." She smiled. "I didn't think you were going to be back so early."

"Yeah, well…" he trailed off.

"Did everything go okay?"

"They welcomed me in, only because they thought I was going to take the cure."

"Oh."

"They couldn't understand why I wouldn't want to take it."

Rogue reached out and gently took his hand for a moment.

"I'm sorry, Bobby."

She then let go and turned away, heading towards the elevator. Bobby seemed surprised that she was just leaving so he called out after her.

"Rogue…want to go for a walk or something?"

Rogue looked back at him.

"I'm really not in the mood."

She then got into the elevator and took it up to her room. Bobby sighed before turning around and heading for the kitchen. He walked in to see Logan transferring a steady supply of beer both canned and bottled into the refrigerator.

"Logan."

Logan looked over at him.

"Back so soon?"

"Yeah…can I ask you something?"

Logan shot him a look, then itched at his knuckles idly and grabbed a bottle of Budweiser. He walked over and straddled his own seat. A card table lay between them with two unoccupied chairs; there primarily so that people with an urge for a late-night snack didn't have to haul their food to the dining room to eat.

Bobby considered duplicating Logan's posture, but instead he just pulled a seat out and sat down in it the regular way.

"What do you wanna talk about, kid?" Logan asked.

"It's Rogue."

"Rogue?"

"Yeah. She was acting kinda distant when I tried to talk to her and I know she confides in you, so I was just wondering if there's anything… wrong."

Logan scratched at his knuckles, couldn't seem to reach the itch, than extended his three long, silvery claws out a few inches. Bobby jumped a little at the sound. Smirking, Logan retracted them slow, letting the wounds left behind heal in their own time.

"She can't touch anybody. And the only person her own age she's made a connection with…that'd be you, hasn't been talking with her lately."

"Well, I've been dealing with some problems of my own."

"And now there's a cure being released soon. And now she's thinking about that."

"Look, I know what you're trying-"

Logan popped a single claw and cracked the cap off his beer bottle. "Damn it, would you let me finish a sentence!"

Bobby quickly quieted down as Logan took a drag off his beer.

"I'm not your marriage counselor, kid. You seem like a good guy, so you probably treat her right. But that doesn't stop Rogue from thinking that she might be dragging you down, and that taking the cure might be her only option of being with you, long term."

"You done?" Bobby asked as he got to his feet.

"You asked." Logan replied.

"She's not thinking about taking the cure because of me."

Logan ignored him as he shook his bottle.

"Freshen me up?"

Bobby narrowed his eyes before flicking the bottle and turning away. Logan went for another drink only to find that the liquid had been turned into solid ice. Logan couldn't help but smirk a little.

"Kid's got balls."

While Logan got up to get another beer from the fridge, traveling down a highway after getting off the train when they finally reached New York, Magneto led Pyro, Juggernaut, Gambit and Madrox to the new hideout until they saw flashing lights in the distance. It was numerous squad cars and policeman waiting for them, guns pointed their way.

"It looks like they were tracking us after all." Pyro muttered.

A cop then got on a megaphone and addressed them.

"Erik Lehnserrh! You and your accomplices have ten seconds to get down on your stomachs with your hands over your heads!"

"Well, I guess its back to the slammer for us." Madrox said.

"Hardly." Magneto responded and then shook his head. "Humans. They never learn."

Magneto extended his hand, expecting all the guns the cops had pointed at them to fly out of their hands but nothing happened. He then smirked.

"Plastic. They're getting better."

Juggernaut then stepped forward.

"I'll handle this."

The ground began to rumble as Juggernaut began running towards the police. They opened fire but the bullets from their plastic guns only bounced off the large mutant's armor harmlessly.

He bashed into the convoy, sending it flying yards away and crashing to the ground like a pile of junk before he began fighting the cops. Juggernaut merely swatted one and he flew through the air before crashing head first against a tree. He winds up and punches the ground and a fissure ripples out and explodes below the rest of the cops, flinging them away.

"Hey, the big guy can't have all the fun." Gambit smirked before charging up a playing card and firing at one of the cop cars. It exploded, sending it high in the air before crashing down.

Pyro then lit a fireball and did the same to another car, and after the two mutants repeated this a couple of times, the entire force that had been sent after them was completely decimated.

Magneto smiled at his Brotherhood's handy work and approached Juggernaut.

"You promised me, Xavier." He growled.

"And I will give you Xavier." Magneto assured. "First thing tomorrow, you will make your attack."


	16. Damage Control

XXXXXX

The next morning Henry stood in the new building in Washington that was going to be used as an office for the mutant's division the President had created. It had everything you'd expect to find in an office, the next step was to hire some people to work.

Just then, Henry looked out through the glass doors and saw a bullet proof limo pull up. Several armed men in black suits got out and walked into the building.

"Dr. McCoy, the President." One of the men said.

After a moment, President McKenna was led in by several more men.

"Henry, you've finally come back."

"My apologizes, Mr. President. The meeting with my…sources took longer than I expected."

"Well, perhaps your sources will want to know about this."

The President handed Hank a folder.

"It's a list of the mutant prisoners that were broken out of Alcatraz by Magneto." McKenna continued. "Unfortunately, a police force had an encounter with him last night and were no match, even with plastic guns. We have a feeling he's planning something big. We need to know when and where his next attack will be."

"I understand the sense of urgency Mr. President, but you must understand there's only so much I can do by myself."

"I know. We've begun hiring some people to work here, hopefully by the end of the week we'll have this operation up and running."

Henry smiled.

"Sounds good to me, Mr. President."

McKenna nodded and then tapped on the folder.

"In the meantime, look over that."

President McKenna then followed the Secret Service men out to the waiting limo as Henry walked over and sat down at one of the desks. He opened up the folder and began looking in over. It was pictures and information about the prisoner. He kept going through it until he turned to the next page and his heart nearly jumped into his throat when he saw the picture of Cain Marko.

"Oh my god."

Back at the mansion, Logan was walking down the hall of the second floor and stopped when he reached Ororo's room.

"Ororo." He said while knocking and than opening the door. "We need to, what the hell's going on?"

Standing in the room was Kurt and Ororo was painting his face white with some kind of makeup.

"We're heading to the Salem Mall and this is the only way to make Kurt look as normal as possible." Ororo explained as she finished.

Now that Kurt's face was painted white, he put on a baseball cap to hide his pointy ears and sunglasses to hide his eyes. His tail was hidden by the trench coat he was wearing.

"The mall?" Logan questioned. "What about training today?"

"The Professor thought the kids were getting a little too stressed and needed a day off, and I agree with him." Ororo said. "Want to go?"

"No."

Logan then shut the door and headed back down the stairs. He shook his head in frustration, knowing just how far behind the team was getting and that's when he spotted Rogue walking to the direction of the garage. He followed her and saw that Bobby, Peter, and Kitty were also waiting as well.

"Hey Logan." Peter greeted when he saw him. "Are you coming?"

"I need to talk to you guys." Logan said, ignoring the question. He then looked at Kitty. "I know that you're not a member of the team, but you'll need to hear this too."

Rogue glanced at Bobby for a second, saying nothing. They could tell by the tone of Logan's voice that this was serious.

"I know how you all feel. You're tired, you're sore. The past few days have been tough hasn't it?"

They all nodded in agreement and Logan narrowed his eyes.

"Big fucking deal."

The four of them now looked stunned, even Rogue seemed taken aback not only by Logan's choice of words, but by the way he said it.

"You guys need to make a decision to whether you want to do this or not." Logan continued. "And that doesn't matter, the pain doesn't matter. You've gotta be able to go through that. Everyday you have to train, it doesn't matter how bad you feel. Everyday. You guys think a Danger Room session is hard? It's nothing compared to what you'll have to go through out there, believe me."

"Logan." Rogue began. "This isn't easy."

"I know, it's not an easy life." Logan agreed. "But understand why I'm here, I'm here for all of you. You either want this, or you don't. And if you don't want it, don't waste my time."

Logan then turned and walked away, leaving them all in silence for a moment before Bobby spoke.

"Can you believe him? He's just now decided to be part of the team and he's telling us how we should be training?"

"Well...he did help stop Magneto and Striker." Rogue responded. "That's more than we've ever done."

"Your hero worship of him will never end, will it?"

Rogue turned her head to glare at her boyfriend.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing." Bobby muttered as he walked into the garage as Peter and Kitty smiled at each other.

Back upstairs, the Professor was finishing getting himself ready as he was going with Ororo and the rest on their little 'field trip' when suddenly the phone rang. Xavier wheeled himself over and picked it up, holding it against his ear.

"Hello?"

"Professor, it's me Henry."

"Yes, Henry." Xavier smiled. "What is it?"

"It's your brother, Professor."

"What about him?"

"He was being kept at Alcatraz and he was broken out when Magneto attacked. I'm not sure where he could be at the moment, but I figured you could use a heads up."

"Indeed. I'll warn the others. Thank you, Henry."

After hanging up the phone, Xavier simply sat there lost in thought, his fingers forming a steeple at his chin. A knock on the door quickly brought him back to reality.

"Professor?" Ororo called. "Are you ready?"

"Yes, Ororo." Xavier answered as he wheeled himself to the door.


	17. Juggernaut's Invasion

XXXXXX

After Xavier left the office he wheeled by the staircase and saw Logan coming down the steps. He looked down the hall and saw Ororo and the others standing by the garage entrance but knew that he needed to tell someone what happened before he left.

"Logan, could I speak with you for a moment?"

"Sure."

"Follow me, please."

Logan followed the Professor back to his office and closed the door behind him.

"What is it?"

"I have something important to tell you. You see…I have a brother. My father died when I was a boy, and it wasn't long after when my mother was remarried to one of her colleagues, Kurt Marko. Kurt had a son from prior marriage named Cain." Xavier explained.

"So he's only your stepbrother?"

"Yes, though the distinction matters little."

"What happened to Cain?" Logan asked.

"As it turned out, Cain was also a mutant. He grew to an extremely large size—all muscle, and developed super-strength. Kurt's abuse had psychologically damaged him, and he became violent."

Xavier took a deep breath and continued.

"At first, it was just small things, theft and such. I always thought I could save him, but Cain would never have it. He began to resort to murder."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Xavier eyes went to the floor.

"Until a few days ago, Cain was safely locked away at Alcatraz."

"Magneto broke him out?"

"Yes. And I fear he is on his way here. Cain placed his hatred for his father onto me, for reasons I've never entirely understood. He's dangerous."

Suddenly the wall behind Xavier's desk crashed in. The Juggernaut charged through, stopping just behind the Professor.

"And he's here!" Juggernaut shouted.

Logan quickly popped his claws out and moved in front of Xavier. The Juggernaut towered over him.

"You wanna tussle, bub? You're gonna have to go through me!"

"Take your best shot, runt!"

Logan leaped forward and tried to stab him but Juggernaut merely swatted him away and he crashed into the bookshelf.

"You cannot stop the Juggernaut."

Getting back to his feet, Logan cracked his neck.

"Won't stop me from trying."

Logan again charged forward but Juggernaut grabbed him and threw him over his shoulder and began running forward. He crashed through the wall and kept going, going threw another wall, until he reached the student lounge before slamming him to the floor.

He pulled Logan up by his jacket and threw him up towards the ceiling. Logan crashed through and fell through the ceiling of the next room.

Logan now had a large gash on his head and his body was covered in bruises.

Back at the garage entrance, Storm ran back in the mansion after telling the others to stay put when she heard the noise from inside. Her eyes widened when she recognized the Professor's brother.

"Cain stop!"

Juggernaut turned when he heard Storm's voice and smirked.

"Ororo. You haven't changed one bit."

"Cain, listen to me-" Storm began.

"Maybe you haven't heard Ororo, but they're calling me the Juggernaut now."

"Whatever problem you have with your brother, it can be reasoned! There's no need for all this!"

"Then you just don't know me, huh?"

Juggernaut then pulled Logan's limp body up and threw him over his head, bodyslaming him to the floor, leaving a sizeable dent as Storm's eyes went white and a gust of wind rushed through the hallway.

"If you will not be reasoned with, then you will leave." Storm said.

The lights flicker out.

"It's up to you, Cain."

Juggernaut began to march towards her, the ground rumbling every time he took a step as Storm pelted him with more and more wind, but no matter how much she used against him, it didn't affect him.

Finally, Juggernaut reached Storm, grabbing her by the throat and lifted her off her feet. Storm chocked in The Juggernaut's grasp and tried to fight out of it the best she could, but her efforts were useless and she was tossed backwards and crashed through the wall of the next room.

"Come on Charles!" Juggernaut shouted. "You can't hide behind these guys anymore! You and me, one on one!"

"Cain Marko!"

Juggernaut spun around as Xavier wheeled himself out of his office. The large mutant smirked as he stepped over Logan's body and made his way toward his stepbrother. The Juggernaut then grabbed the wheelchair by it's armrests and lifted it up until he and Xavier were at eye level.

"Cain please." Xavier began. "I can help you."

"I don't want your help!"

He then tossed the wheelchair forward and Xavier went sailing out of it, sliding against the floor until he hit the wall.

By this time, Peter had made his way back in, tearing his shirt off.

"Hey!"

Juggernaut turned just in time to see Colossus completely metaled up.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

"With pleasure."

Colossus and Juggernaut marched towards each other and grabbed each other's hands, lacing their fingers. They both strained as they tried to push each other backwards, and for a moment it looked like they were evenly matched until finally Colossus began loosing some of his footing and started being forced backwards.

His eyes then widened in shock as he couldn't stop the other mutant from pushing him back, Colossus certainly wasn't use to being weaker then somebody else.

"Come on." Juggernaut laughed. "Is this the best effort you can put together?"


	18. X Men United

XXXXXX

The two kept going until Colossus was smashed through the front door of the mansion and the two large mutants were now outside. Juggernaut let go of Colossus' hands and balled up his own fist, slamming it into his face. The shot didn't hurt Colossus, but the force was enough to send him off balance.

"We have to help." Rogue said as she ran back in, having watched the whole thing from the garage entrance.

"How are we supposed to fight that guy?" Kitty asked.

"You're not fighting anyone, you're getting to safety." Bobby responded as he looked over at Rogue, then at Nightcrawler. "This is what we trained for."

The two of them nodded at him before they began running towards the front entrance to help Colossus fight this seemingly unstoppable mutant.

Outside in the front of the mansion, Colossus and the Juggernaut continued to their battle, both exchanging punches that only sent the other staggering backwards but did little to inflict damage. Finally, Juggernaut came forward and grabbed Colossus' shoulders, spinning himself around before throwing Colossus as hard as he could, sending the big steel man straight to the large gates, making him crash straight through it.

Juggernaut grinned at his handiwork but before he could even think of what to do next, Iceman blasted him from behind with an ice beam. Juggernaut turned around and saw the young man who now had a look of fear on his face.

"Thanks kid. That had a nice, cool feeling."

Juggernaut then kicked the ground and created a ripple through the ground until it exploded under Iceman, throwing him high into the air. He landed hard a few feet away.

BAMF!

Nightcrawler teleported and landed atop of the Juggernaut's head. Juggernaut staggered around, trying to bat Nightcrawler off as he covered the eye holes of the large mutant's helmet with his three-fingered hands.

"Off, bug!"

Reaching behind him, Juggernaut was finally able to grab Nightcrawler by the waist and threw him straight into a tree. Nightcrawler slumped to the ground, looking dazed.

SNIKT!

Logan charged Juggernaut from behind, claws first and stabbed his exposed arm. Logan withdrew his claws as Juggernaut turned and punched him with a right hook.

"Don't you know enough to stay down?"

"I'm a slow learner." Logan replied.

Juggernaut grabbed Logan and ran, smashing him into the wall of the mansion. He then pulled him up and head butted him, sending Logan off balance for a second. Then he grabbed Logan and pulled him to his feet. Juggernaut grabbed Logan by either side of his head and began squeezing as hard as he could.

"Stop! Leave him alone!"

Rogue screamed and grabbed one of Juggernaut's arms with her bare hands. Juggernaut gasped and he let go of Logan as he was being drained. However, he was still strong enough to push Rogue aside, forcing her to let go before dropping down to one knee. He was weakened.

The sky then blasted with thunder and lightning as the wind bursts onto Juggernaut, pushing him back with all its might. Storm stood there, her eyes rolled up into the back of her head before she made a lightning bolt come down and strike Juggernaut.

Colossus carried Nightcrawler back into the mansion, Iceman too was safe inside as Logan grabbed Rogue and pulled her in as well. Storm then formed a small tornado and it swirled around Juggernaut.

"You…can't…stop…me!" Juggernaut screamed as the massive winds bursts through the air.

However, as the winds from the tornado picked up, Juggernaut's feet finally left the ground and he was now being spun around. Finally, he was thrown yards away by the force of the tornado.

Storm took a deep breath as the sky went back to normal and the tornado ceased. The rest of the team sighed in relief as the Juggernaut was gone.

"Good job, kid." Logan said as he looked at Rogue.

"Good job, everyone." Storm echoed.

XXXXXX

When they all finally got their barrings back, the team gathered in the Professor's office trying to figure out what to do next.

"Hank called and told me that Cain was one of the mutant prisoners broken out of Alcatraz." Xavier explained. "I didn't think Erik would go this far."

"What do you mean?" Logan asked.

"Cain didn't know about this place." Ororo responded. "Erik must have told him where he could find the Professor."

"So what are we going to do?" Rogue asked. "He's gonna be back."

"Why didn't you put some kind of security system put in after this place was invaded next time?" Logan asked.

"What were we supposed to do, Logan?" Ororo responded. "Put landmines around the mansion?"

"Enough, everyone. I know how shaken up you all are." Xavier replied. "We will carry on as usual. That's all we can do."

Suddenly, a knock on the door got the attention of all of them.

A blonde teenager was standing in the doorway.

"Hello." Ororo said as she stood up.

Warren Worthington III was standing in the entry way, his wings concealed under a overcoat.

"I'm sorry to intrude, but I…I heard this was a safe place for mutants."

"It was." Logan muttered.

"It still is." Ororo responded and then looked back at the young man. "What is your name?"

"Warren. Warren Worthington."

Xavier looked at him.

"Worthington? Then your father-"

"Yeah."

Warren hung his head, disgusted.

"Because of me."

Ororo touched his arm.

"Not because of you, Warren. It's not your fault."

She looked back at Kurt and Bobby.

"Kurt, Bobby, could you show Warren a room?"

"Sure."


	19. Rogue Moves Out

XXXXXX

Warren followed Bobby and Kurt down the hall as they led him to a room he could stay in. He looked around and saw that some of the walls had large holes in them and the hallway was a mess.

"What happened here?" Warren asked.

"Don't ask." Bobby responded.

They made their way up the stairs and they soon arrived at a room.

"You can stay in this room." Bobby said. "Sorry it's kind of empty, but-"

He opened the door and Warren looked inside.

"It's perfect."

Bobby walked away but Kurt stayed behind and watched the teenager as he continued to look around the room. Warren then removed his overcoat and expanded his wings. Despite himself, Kurt gasped.

"Oh my."

Warren turned back around.

"Oh, sorry."

"You're an archangel." Kurt gasped.

Warren looked at Kurt and raised a brow.

"Uh…what are you-"

"Which archangel are you?" Kurt walked further into the room. "Are you Michael, or Raphael? Or could you be Gabriel?"

"My name is Warren. I'm not an archangel."

"What? Of course you are. You have angel wings."

"It's my mutation." Warren explained. "I'm only a mutant, not an angel."

"Oh."

Kurt now looked disappointed and a uncomfortable silence followed. He finally looked back up and smiled a little.

"You have nice wings."

Warren smiled back.

"Thank you."

Meanwhile, back downstairs Rogue was standing outside on the veranda, looking up to the sky watching the sun starting to go down. Slowly, Bobby walked out to join her.

"You did great out there." Bobby said.

Rogue seemed a little startled after he spoke but soon smiled.

"Thanks."

"Is now a good time to talk?"

"Sure."

"Well…where should I start?"

"Why didn't you tell me how badly what happened with your parents at Boston affected you?"

"I figured you have enough stuff to deal with on your own, without having to hear your boyfriend complain about his parents not being able to handle he's a mutant." Bobby replied.

"Come on Bobby, I was there with you that day. I saw they're reaction, it was almost the exact same way my parents acted when they found out I was a mutant." Rogue responded. "When we came back here after AlkaliLake, I could tell there was something bothering you, but you wouldn't talk to me about it."

Rogue took a deep breath.

"I'm a lot stronger than you give me credit for, and you thinking otherwise hurts."

Then the two of them stood there together in complete and utter silence, as they both knew where their much-needed conversation was inevitably heading.

"So, where does this leave us now?" Bobby asked Rogue, as he ended the muted moment between them.

"I don't know." Rogue sighed. "Listen, why don't we talk more tomorrow?"

Bobby nodded.

"Alright."

He turned and walked away just as the sun started to go down.

XXXXXX

Early the next morning, a reporter stands outside the Worthington Cure Clinic that has just been opened up in Westchester. Angry mutant protestors were yelling behind her. Some have lined up at the door of the clinic.

"History will be made here today." The reporter began. "For the first time ever, the so called mutant "cure" will be made available to the public. As you can see, they are mixed reactions. Some mutants are desperate for the cure, while others are insulted by the mere idea of it."

Back at the mansion, wearing black gloves and her green hooded cloak, Rogue was standing by the front door and she had finally come to a conclusion.

Though it was bothering her, she had finally decided that she was going to take the cure. She couldn't allow herself to change her mind. Rogue took a deep breath as she slowly put her hand on the doorknob.

"Where you headed, kiddo?" A familiar voice asked behind her.

She stopped in her tracks. Rogue didn't want to turn around, she was to an extent ashamed to reveal her decision. Finally, she turned to face Logan. She didn't say anything but she didn't have to, Logan already knew where she was going.

"I hope your not doing this for some boy." He sighed.

"No…it's not that." Rogue began. "I've tried to deal with this, but I can't ignore what could be my only chance at a normal life. You don't know what it's like to be afraid of your powers, to get close to anyone."

"Yeah, I do." Logan responded. "But if I told you I know exactly what you're going through I'd be lying. I honestly don't know what I'd do if I was in your position."

"I know you don't agree, and it's a bad example to set for other mutants, but-"

"Hey, I'm not your father."

Rogue then smiled at Logan.

"I'm your friend." He continued. "If you wanna go, go. Just remember that I'm always there for you, and the school will always be there for you."

She slowly walked up to him and hugged him, Logan hugged her back.

"Be careful, Rogue." He said as they let go of each other.

"Marie." She corrected.

He smiled.

"Marie."

Logan turned away and Rogue continued her way out.

However, back at Magneto's hideout Pyro was standing by the exit attaching his wrist lighter as Magneto tried to calm down a raging Juggernaut.

"I want blood!" Juggernaut shouted as he pounded the wall.

"Cain! Calm yourself!"

Juggernaut turned to Magneto.

"I know you want Charles, and you'll get another chance. But now need to focus our efforts on destoying the cure."

"I don't give a damn about that stinkin' cure!"

"You should. That cure is meant for all mutants, including you."

The larger mutant finally seemed to relax as Magneto walked over to Pyro.

"Are you ready, Pyro?" Magneto asked as he walked up next to him.

"I'm a little nervous." The young man admitted. Knowing what happened to Mystique after she was captured, what would stop them from using the cure of him if he were to be arrested?

"Remember why you're doing this. You're doing this to prevent any other mutant from the cure being used against them against his or her will."

"Yeah."

Magneto then noticed his reluctance.

"Are you a god...or an insect?"

"I told you I would do it." Pyro responded. "And I will."

Magneto nodded.

"Do it. Do it for all mutants."


	20. Cure Wars

XXXXXX

Walking down the hallway of the second floor of the mansion, Bobby stopped outside of Rogue's room. He slowly pushed the door open and saw that it was empty. He walked inside and sat on the bed, depressed. As he stared at the floor, Peter walked by the room and saw Bobby inside.

"Hey."

Bobby looked up.

"Storm's looking for us." Peter told him. "Where's Rogue?"

"She left." Bobby responded.

"Oh…you don't think?"

He looked up at the other boy.

"What?"

"They just opened up the first cure clinic, it's only a few blocks away from here."

"No…she wouldn't." Bobby said to himself as he got to his feet.

He quickly passed Peter out of the room.

"Tell Storm I had to go."

Quickly running down the stairs, Bobby headed out of the front door and ran to the gates of the mansion as fast as his legs could go.

Downtown, a crowd formed outside of the newly set up 'cure clinic.' Rogue got off the bus and went over to stand in the back on the line. She looked over across the street at the mutants who were protesting against the cure.

The crowd began to chant;

"We don't need a cure! We don't need a cure! We don't need a cure!"

Rogue looked down and as she continued to wait, memories of all the people she had touched over the years began to fill her mind. Cody, Logan, Magneto, Bobby, John, Storm.

"Hello, chere."

Rogue look up when she heard that and slowly turned around and found herself looking into the red on black eyes of Remy LeBeau who was smirking at her. She figured he was here for the cure too and smiled back.

"Hi."

"So what's a pretty little thing like you looking to get cured for?" Remy asked.

Rogue ignored the question and Remy laughed.

"Oh come on now, don't be like that."

"Please leave me alone."

"Don't worry, I ain't gonna hurt you. At least not for now."

She turned back around after she heard the man say that but Remy was already gone. He made his way across the street when suddenly he was pulled into an alleyway.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Pyro asked.

"Magneto said you could use a little help." Remy smirked.

"Well, I don't."

"Really? That clinic is still up and running. What's the hold up?"

"I'm waiting for the right time." Pyro said before pushing his way past Remy and making his way into the crowd of protesters.

Just then, Bobby got out of a taxi he had managed to flag down and quickly made his way through the crowd.

"Rogue!" He yelled, trying to spot her.

Suddenly, he bumped into someone very familiar.

"John?"

Pyro looked at his old friend with an amused look on his face.

"My name is Pyro." He responded while shaking his head. "And what are you doing here? Taking the cure so you can go home to mommy and daddy?"

Bobby narrowed his eyes as memories from the visit he paid his parents came into his mind, how they thought he was going to take the cure. He balled up his fist and it actually began to turn blue.

"You shut the hell up about my family."

Pyro sneered and formed a fireball in his hand.

"Come on, Iceman." Pyro dared. "Make a move."

Bobby looked down at the fireball for a moment before looking back up at Pyro. He shook his head and began to turn away.

"Same old Bobby." Pyro said as Bobby made his way through the crowd. "Still afraid of a fight!"

Bobby ignored him and continued moving along until he finally spotted Rogue standing in the back of the line.

"Rogue!"

Rogue looked over when she heard his voice.

"Bobby! What are you doing here?"

"I don't want you to do this, we can find another way."

"I told you that I'm not doing this for you. And there is no other way."

Before either one could say another word, Pyro lit a fireball. At a same time, Remy walked up a few feet away and charged up a playing card. They looked at each other and nodded and launched their respective powers at the clinic. It exploded on impact and immediately caught fire as people screamed and began to run away.

"No!" Rogue screamed when she saw the building. "I have to get in there!"

She ran forward but Bobby grabbed her and held her back.

"It's too late, Rogue."

"No!" She yelled again.

Meanwhile, several cops who saw Pyro ran over towards him but were immediately engulfed in flame. Suddenly, another explosion went off as a cop car was blown up by Remy. He charged up another card and looked over at the pyromaniac.

"Come on, we've got to go!" He yelled before running off.

Bobby pulled away from Rogue and ran over to where Pyro was standing. Pyro smirked at his saw him running over and prepared himself by lighting another fireball instead of going with Remy.

"Finally decided to grow a pair?"

"Someone has to stop you." Bobby responded as he got himself ready.

"You're in over your head, Bobby." Pyro said. "Maybe you should go back to school."

"You never should have left."

Pyro didn't respond as he then sent a line of fire straight at his former best friend. Bobby retaliated with ice and the two powers collided. Both pushed each other back and forth, trying to get leverage. People on the street who hadn't ran away watched the fight in awe. Finally, Pyro pushed forward and used more strength to get the advantage.

Pyro continued to engulf Bobby in flames as he fell to his knees, barely able to hold them back. Finally, Pyro pulled away and Bobby fell to the ground, weakened.

Before he could do anymore, Pyro heard the sounds of sirens coming. He looked down at Bobby one last time before turning away and running away from the burning cure clinic as fast as he could.

Taking a deep breath, Bobby pushed himself back up to his feet and saw that his former friend was gone as more cop cars made their way towards the building. He ran over to where Rogue last was but when he got there, she was gone too.

"Rogue!" He yelled while frantically looking around for her. "Rogue!"


	21. Out of Control

XXXXXX

Gasping for air when he finally stopped running, Pyro dropped down to one knee trying to get oxygen back into his lungs. His legs were dead and there was a slight pain in his right side. After about a minute, he pulled himself back up and noticed he was in the Westchester Park District. He had no idea where Remy was and just decided to head back to Magneto's hideout when suddenly something slammed into him from behind.

He stumbled forward, almost knocked off his feet and quickly turned around, ready to launch a fireball at whoever it was, put to his shock, it was Rogue who was coming straight at him.

"You bastard!" She shouted while swinging her hands widely, hitting him wherever she possibly could. "You destroyed my chance of being normal again!"

Pyro finally regained his composure long enough to grab Rogue's wrists in his hands, stopping her from hitting him.

"So you're the reason Bobby was at the cure clinic. I should have figured you'd want the cure." Pyro said while looking her up and down as she thrashed in his grip. "You're pathetic."

Rogue went still in Pyro's grip after he said that and the look of rage her face had was replaced by a look of hurt.

"I'm not pathetic for wanting a normal life."

"Newsflash, Rogue. You're not normal."

Pyro then let her go and Rogue rubbed her arm.

"Why did you leave the school?" Rogue suddenly asked. "I thought you were coming back, why didn't you?"

"It's a prison." Pyro responded. "People always telling me what I can and can't do, people telling me how to be, who to be."

Pyro formed a fireball, leveling the flame. He took a step forward, and Rogue steadied, forcing a stare.

"This is who I am."

He snapped his palm shut and the flame disappeared.

"I thought I knew you." Rogue exhaled. "I knew you were always wild John, but I'd never guess that you'd join Magneto."

"You never knew me." Pyro responded in a cold tone. "You haven't been through what I have."

"Right. You think you're the one who's been through something?" Rogue asked. "You know all those nightmare scenarios, those end-of-the-world what ifs? People like you make them real. We're all going to suffer and why? Because you're angry."

"Are you even gonna try to understand?" Pyro asked in a small voice.

"What's to understand?" Rogue scoffed. "I saw the reports of what happened at Alcatraz. You killed people, didn't you?"

"I don't know...maybe."

Pyro then flexed his hand into a fist.

"Try to understand, please."

"You want me to understand? Turn yourself in," she said, taking a tentative step forwards. "You can help us find Magneto, turn him back over to the authorities. You can put things right…"

"Things aren't ever going to be right again, Rogue. The battle lines are drawn, the war's starting. We're both going to have to live with it, like it or not."

Lunging forward, Pyro took a hold of Rogue, taking her by surprised. He pulled her to him and kissed her, willing his memories into her, trying to share the pain, the isolation, everything he'd been through since he left with Magneto at AlkaliLake.

Rogue struggled as she tried to get him to her go, afraid of hurting him. Pyro finally let her go and Rogue fell to the ground. She touched her lips and looked around, but the pyromaniac was gone.

XXXXXX

At the mansion, Xavier, Ororo, and Kurt were standing in the Professor's office watching the television. On the screen, Magneto was speaking to the nation.

"The attack in Westchester today will be the first of many." Magneto stated. "As long as this 'cure', this so called hope, exists, cities will not be safe, streets will not be safe, in short…you will not be safe."

Xavier continued gazing at the screen as his old friend continued.

"And to my fellow mutants, I will bring you hope. And I ask for only one thing of those who would oppose…don't get in my way. Enough mutant blood has been spilt already."

The transmission ends abruptly.

"Things are getting worse." Xavier sighed.

"What are we going to do?" Ororo asked.

"We have to wait."

Ororo and Kurt then left the office, walking side by side down the hall with students amongst them.

"I think this is a situation that calls for prayer." Kurt began. "I'm going to a church nearby tonight, any interest in joining me?"

Ororo smiled at Kurt, and for a second wished that she could have the kind of attitude he had. No matter how bad things got, he never lost his faith.

"Sure, Kurt. When all the kids are in bed, we'll go."

Kurt smiled back. It was a nice smile, once you got past the teeth.

"I'll seen you then."

Meanwhile, at the Worthington Industries building, Worthington Senior was on the phone with his housekeeper who took care of things in property he owned in Canada. He was still on a desperate search to find his son. He wasn't at the penthouse in the city, he wasn't at the house they owned in California, and he soon found out he wasn't at the house in Canada either.

Worthington hung up the phone just as Kavita walked in.

"Any luck?" She asked.

He shook his head as he sat down and wrung his hands.

Worthington sighs and wrings his hands.

"My son's gone." Worthington began. "This cure has gotten so far out of hand…everything's happening so quickly."

He looked up at Kavita.

"I think I've made a terrible mistake, Kavita."

"This cure is a good thing, Warren. There are mutants out there who need it."

"But it wasn't supposed to be like this."

"You can't blame yourself."

Worthington stood up and went over to the window.

"Change always happens slowly." Kavita continued. "You'll see. One day you'll be remembered as the man who came up with the solution for the mutant problem."

Worthington slumps, just a little.

"I just want my son back."


	22. The Church of Magneto

XXXXXX

"My fellow Americans…mutants have been inhabiting our country, our world for an unknown span of time. Many of us fear them, some may even hate them. But we have seen over time that crime does not discriminate, as there are mutants out there who are criminals and terrorists, just like humans. There are mutants out there who need help with control over their abilities, and sadly yes, there are mutants out there being mistreated."

President McKenna and Henry McCoy sat in the Situation Room of the White House, watching McKenna's speech earlier today when he announced to the public the creation of a mutants division in his cabinet.

Hank continued watching as the President brought him to the podium and shook his hand, announcing him as the Secretary of Mutant Affairs. McKenna then shut off the screen and turned to him.

"By now, I'm sure you've heard the news that the first cure clinic has been destroyed."

"Yes." Hank sighed. "I'm almost certain that a follower of Magneto was responsible."

"What can we expect next?"

"Other cure clinics that are being set up will be in danger, I'm sure. They will need to be protected."

"I'll order armed guards to be set up at the next clinic."

Hank looked at his hands for a moment before speaking again.

"Mr. President, I must confess that I thought about taking the cure."

The President looked over at him.

"You did?"

"Yes, but now…I see what a horrible mistake that would have been. Mutants everywhere have seen me on television, if I had taken the cure it would have sent a bad message to all of them."

"Perhaps." The President agreed.

Getting to his feet, Hank smoothed out his tie.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to meet with my sources again."

"Hank-" The President began as he too got up. "I need you here. This whole situation is getting worse."

"Exactly. That's why I need to meet with them. In order to stop Magneto."

Hank went to exit the room but the President spoke.

"Henry…don't make me regret my decision to put you on my cabinet."

The blue mutant looked back at him and smiled.

"You won't."

McKenna only could watch as Hank finally left the room before taking a seat back down in the chair and taking a deep breath, the weight of the whole situation visable on him.

BAMF!

Later that night, Kurt teleported himself and Ororo to a abandoned church he discovered when he came to live at the mansion and went there from time to time to pray. When the smoke of his teleportation cleared, the two of them walked towards the church.

"Thank you for accompanying me, Ororo." Kurt smiled.

"It's my pleasure."

However, as they got closer they could hear voices from inside. And the words 'Mutants Against the Cure' was painted on the outside wall.

"What's going on?" Ororo asked.

"I don't know. This church is always empty when I come."

"Let's go in."

Ororo opened the door and the two of them stepped inside to see a gathering of mutants, at least a hundred in number. Standing on a stage in front of them all was Callisto, a woman with a patch over her left eye and a firm build. She tried to silence the din.

"People, listen! This is about getting organized! We have to band together, show the Department of Mutant Affairs that we mean business!"

Psylocke, a woman with purple hair with a red tattoo over her left eye, shouts out from the crowd;

"They wanna exterminate us, Callisto!"

"The cure is voluntary, Psylocke. No one is talking about extermination!"

""No one ever talks about it!" A voice yelled out.

Suddenly, Magneto stood up, dressed in a ratty black sweater and cape. Gambit was also with him.

"They just do it."

Ororo's eyes widened in shock when she saw him and she quickly grabbed a hold of the sleeve of Kurt's jacket, pulling him over to sit on a bench so they would be hidden by the other mutants who were standing. Meanwhile, Magneto walked to the front of the room, taking the stage as though he belonged there and continued.

"By all means, go about your lives. Ignore all of the many signs around you. Then they'll come for you, and the rest of us will be better off without you. And then you will realize, that while you sat here prattling on about committees and organizations and DMAs, the extermination had already begun."

Magneto stares intensely into the audience.

"They wish to cure us…but I say to you that we are the cure. Make no mistake, my brothers. The humans will draw first blood…they already have drawn first blood. And when the air is still, and the night has fallen, there's only one question you must answer. Who will you stand with?"

All the mutants continued watching him as he spoke again.

"Will you stand and fight? Or wait for the inevitable genocide? Choose now. Choose wisely. This is the beginning of the end, and your choice will make all the difference."

He strides off as quickly and suddenly as he began. In no time at all, Quills, a young Asian mutant was at his and Gambit's heels.

"You talk tough for a geezer in a cape."

Gambit turned to face him and quickly pulled out his metal staff, charging it up and pointing it under Quills chin.

"Back off." He warned.

Quills looking at the staff that was glowing purple before Gambit lowered it. By this time Callisto and Psylocke had walked over to them as well.

"You so proud of being a mutant, old man? Where's your mark?" Callisto asked.

Magneto smiles faintly and pulls up his sleeve.

"My dear, I have already been marked once."

He showed her his serial number, from Auschwitz.

"Let me assure you, no needle will ever touch my skin again."

Callisto shrugged and turned to the others.

"You punks know who you're talking to?" Gambit asked.

Quills' face spiked up.

"Do you?"

Gambit smirked in his face, unimpressed as Ororo and Kurt continued watching the exchange with the rest of the mutants who hadn't moved.

"We have to do something." Ororo began but Kurt stopped her from getting up and shook his head.

"Not in the house of god."

Magneto then addressed Callisto.

"And what can you do?"

"I know that you control metal." Callisto began. "And that there's a hundred and two mutants in this room."

"So you have talents." Magneto responded, politely bored.

He began to turn away but found that Callisto once again blocked his way.

"That and more. I can tell you how many mutants are on this block. In this city."

Magneto became intrigued.

"This state." She finished.

"You can sense other mutants and their powers?"

Callisto nodded.

"Could you locate one for me?"


	23. Battle Ground

XXXXXX

The following morning, Ororo was standing in the war room of the mansion along with Logan and the Professor, telling them what she saw last night involving Magneto and the mutants from the church.

"Apparently this woman can locate any other mutant on the planet, like a living Cerebro." Ororo began.

"I wonder who Magneto wanted located." Logan asked.

"I'm not sure." Xavier spoke.

"Maybe I can help you with that."

They all turned their heads when they heard the voice and saw Hank step into the room.

"Still a mutant, I see." Logan said with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes." He responded while placing the sample of the cure he took on the table.

"Henry, what are you doing back here?" Ororo asked.

"I couldn't help but overhear what you were saying, about Magneto trying to locate a mutant." Hank then opened up a file he held in his hand and placed it on the table. "Do any of you know this young man?"

The three of them looked at the photo of the young green mutant and Xavier and Ororo looked at each other.

"That's Jimmy." Ororo said.

"Who?"

"James Hawkings." Xavier specified. "He was a student here up until last year when his father pulled him out for unknown reasons."

"Well, this young mutant's DNA is the source of the cure." Hank began. "I have a feeling he is the one Magneto is after."

"What's Magneto gonna do with him?" Logan asked.

"I'm not sure…kill him maybe. He's being kept at the Worthington building in Manhattan. And he and everyone else working there is in mortal danger if Magneto does decide to attack that building."

"We have to rescue him." Ororo said.

"Wait a minute." Logan interrupted. "Should we really do that? Should we really stop Magneto from destroying the cure? Isn't that what we want too?"

"If you recall, I was never happy about a cure for mutation being released." Ororo began. "But we can't let Magneto continue to kill innocent people, especially a child."

"Ororo's right." Xavier agreed. "If we do nothing, than the war that Erik has been trying to start will become a reality."

"So we have to get to the Worthington building before Magneto does."

As Hank said that, a figure appears from behind the doorway. It was Warren and he had overheard the whole thing.

"I have to go with you guys!" Warren shouted as he ran into the room.

All the adults turned to him.

"My dad is going to be at the center of whatever Magneto has in store. I can't let him hurt my dad."

"Kid, you have no idea what you're in for out there, and you aren't trained. We can't risk it." Logan responded.

"For once I agree with Logan." Ororo said. "We cannot risk having an untrained student join us out there. It's too dangerous."

"As long as I have my wings, I'll be fine."

Hank looked atWarrenand saw the determination in his eyes. He then looked back at the others.

"I don't think the lad's going to budge." Hank spoke.

He turned back to Warren.

"Am I right?"

"Listen, I can go with you guys, or go myself." Warren said. "If you haven't noticed, I do have wings that will fly me over there you know."

Ororo sighed as Warren continued.

"My dad might not have done the most responsible thing, but he's still my dad and I'm not just going to sit here and let something happens to him. So, I can either ride with you all, or I can take myself. Either way, I'll be there. But it would be nice if I'm not tired by the time I reach the building."

Logan, Xavier, Ororo, and Hank all looked at each other for a moment. Finally, Ororo spoke.

"Hank, get Warren a suit. He'll need one."

Warren smiled as Hank led him to the dressing room. Ororo then turned to Logan.

"Logan, get the others down here."

Meanwhile, at 54th streeton the upper east side of Manhattan, horns were blaring at each other on the packed highway. Drivers leaned out their windows, craning their necks to see ahead where two cars have collided. A cop stood between two drivers who looked ready to tear each other's throats out.

"Just calm down," The cop said, "We'll get all this reported, then we'll-"

"This dumb ass should have been watching where he was going!"

"You shouldn't have been riding my ass!"

A groaning then takes the air. The cop stares down the street as the drivers stop honking. They eyed on another, confused. Suddenly, several cars are levitated high into the air before crashing back down on other cars.

At the end of the street, Magneto led Pyro, Juggernaut, Gambit, Madrox, Callisto, Psylocke, and Quills with his hands outstretched. He magnetically parts the sea of cars, sending them crashing to either side of the road, slamming them into buildings. They kept walking until they reached the pharmaceutical building with the words 'Worthington Industries' printed on the front of it.

Magneto looked up at the 200 foot tall skyscraper for a moment before turning to Callisto.

"You're sure the boy's still inside?"

"Positive. He's in the southeast corner of the tenth floor."

"Now it begins. Pyro?"

Pyro looked at him.

"Find the boy. And kill him."

Pyro swallowed nervously before nodding and heading towards the building. Magneto then looked towards the rest of the Brotherhood.

"The rest of you, stay out here. I have a feeling we'll have company soon."

XXXXXX

Back at the mansion, Wolverine and Beast walked down the hall of the mansion sub-complex together. Hank pulled on his old X-Men jacket snugly.

"I can't believe this used to fit me."

Wolverine chuckled as they met up with Storm, Nightcrawler, Iceman, Colossus, andWarren.

"Where's Rogue?" Wolverine asked.

Iceman looked down.

"I don't know."

Wolverine sighed and looked towardsWarren.

"Hey kid, what do we call you?"

Warren smiled and looked at Nightcrawler.

"Angel."

"Well, I've heard worse." He responded while taking a glance at Iceman who gave him a look of incredulance in response.

"All right, everyone, listen up." Storm began. "You're not all the most experienced, and I'm giving you this chance to back out now. This isn't going to be like the Danger Room, we might not all make it back. Can you handle that?"

"We're not kids anymore. We know what's at stake here." Iceman said.

"We're ready." Colossus echoed.

"So am I."

They all looked over when they heard that and Rogue came around the corner, having a uniform on like they all did. Wolverine grinned when he saw her.

"All right. We're in this together. X-Men, all of us."

They all nodded in agreement.

"Let's move out."

The X-Men file into the hangar and walked up the ramp and onto the jet. To their surprise, Xavier was there, sitting in his wheelchair.

"What do you think you're doing?" Wolverine asked.

"I'm going with all of you." Xavier responded.

"Are you out of your mind?"

"I'm the only one who can stop Cain. The rest of you need to get his helmet off, I'll take care of things from there."

"Are you sure you're up to this?" Beast asked.

"No. But I really don't have a choice."

They all then took their seats. Rogue and Iceman looked at each other, both clearly scared out of their minds.

Storm took the pilot's seat, Beast next to her.

"Everyone ready?" Storm asked.

"As we'll ever be." Xavier said.

"All right."

She starts the jet.

"Let's see how fast this thing can go."


	24. War Zone

XXXXXX

Inside of his office, Worthington stood by the window looking down at the carnage below. Kavita then walked over and joined him.

"They're coming after me." Worthington said to himself.

As the Brotherhood stood outside of the large office building, police cars raced towards them but Magneto merely used his powers to stop them and sent them flying backwards before they could even come close to them. He then looked towards Gambit, Psylocke, and Quills.

"Find the doctor." He ordered.

They nodded and moved towards the building.

As they did, Callisto's brows furrowed as she looked up towards the sky.

"Something's coming."

The cloaked X-Jet then landed on the roof opposite of Worthington Industries. Lightning lights the sky as Storm flies down from the roof, Beast follows her, roaring and landing like a true animal. Iceman forms an ice slide and hangs onto Rogue's waist as he goes down it.

Nightcrawler teleports himself down, Colossus in his metal form jumps off and roof. And finally, Wolverine descends a chute, using his claws to slow his descent.

They all lined up as Magneto narrowed his eyes.

"Traitors to their own cause."

He then looked towards Madrox.

"It's time to do your part."

Madrox grinned and formed several more copies of himself. As he did, Wolverine shouted to the rest;

"Get ready!"

Suddenly, multiple copies of Madrox began running from the Worthington building, across the street to where the X-Men stood. Wolverine quickly sliced through a street light and it came crashing down on several copies. Beast snarled and leaped into the air, swinging around a pole before tackling one of the copies to the ground.

Iceman formed an ice blockade, stopping some of the copies of Madrox that were charging him and Rogue. Storm rose into the air and formed a tidal wave, taking out many. Colossus picked up a fallen a pole a swung it at the large crowd, nailing many at once. Nightcrawler teleported, hitting one copy after another. He then drop kicked one, sending him flying backwards crashing through the windshield of a car.

Magneto narrowed his eyes as he looked at the large metal mutant and held out his hand, freezing him in place. Colossus could do nothing as he levitated off the ground and then was sent flying backwards at a great speed. He finally crashed about a mile away into an abandoned tanker truck and it exploded on impact.

While the X-Men continued battling Multiple Man, back in the building, Worthington and Kavita walked briskly through the hall, looking for a way out.

As they turned a corner, Gambit and Quills appeared. Worthington and Kavita promptly turned the other way, but Psylocke appeared from the shadows, purple energy glowing in her right hand like a knife.

"Going somewhere?"

Worthington and Kavita stopped in their tracks, trapped.

"You're the guy who invented the cure, right?" Gambit asked.

"I am." Worthington admitted. "What bearing that has on what's going on now is lost on me."

"Sure."

He signals to Psylocke, who grabs Worthington and drags him away.

"No! Don't hurt him!" Kavita pleaded.

Quill grabbed Kavita's shoulders.

"Shh…don't scream…"

He hugs her, comforting her.

"It's all right…everything's gonna be all right…"

Suddenly, his entire body spikes up. Kavita's eyes widen. The spikes retract, and Kavita slumps to the floor, dead. Quills clapped his hands as though brushing off dust, then follows Gambit and Psylocke.

Elsewhere in large building, Pyro walked through the halls trying to find the room of the boy when several security members began running towards him. He scoffed and quickly launched a line of fire at them, scorching their bodies.

Outside, Wolverine and Beast were fighting back to back the multiple copies of Madrox. Wolverine shouted to Beast, both conversing as they fight.

"I thought you were a diplomat?"

"Well, as Churchill said, there comes a time when all men must-"

Beast stopped to back flip over an incoming copy who he then punches to the ground.

"Oh you get the point!"

XXXXXX

Meanwhile in the facility, Jimmy was sitting on the bed when suddenly the locked doorknobs started to rattle. He gasps and hides under the bed just as the door is kicked in.

Pyro looked around the room until he saw the boy hiding behind the bed.

"Get up." He ordered.

When he didn't listen he formed a fireball in his hands and walked closer but it extinguished. He looked at his hand in surprise for a moment before reaching down and pulling Jimmy up.

"Pyro?" Jimmy said once he saw him.

Pyro looked at the young boy, stunned to see him as he remembered him from his days at the school.

"Leech?"

"Are you an X-Man?" Jimmy asked. "Can you get me out of here?"

"I'm afraid a lot has changed since you've been away." Pyro answered as he roughly took Jimmy's arm and dragged him out.

_"John."_

A voice broke into his thoughts. Pyro looked around wildly, wondering where the sudden voice came from.

"Who's there?" He yelled.

_"You have no need to shout, my boy. I can hear you just fine."_

Pyro smirked as he recognized the voice.

"Professor…how are you, oh right." He remembered that Xavier was a telepath.

"Professor Xavier?" Jimmy questioned. "Is that you?"

_"Yes, Jimmy. Is it me."_

"Where are you?" Pyro asked.

_"That's irrelevant at the moment."_

"What do you want?"

_"I can't allow you to run away with the child, John. Let's talk."_

"I'm not going to run away." Pyro growled. "I'm going to walk. As long as I have this brat, you're not going to do anything."

_"Do you really think that this is the answer, child?" _Xavier pressed. _"To threaten the life of an innocent boy, a mutant like yourself, simply because you're angry and afraid?"_

"And your plan is so perfect? Make nice with humans when they want to kill us all? You saw what Stryker did to his own kid. If human parents can do that to their own children, who the hell are mutants safe from?"

_"Obviously not fellow mutants, as Jimmy can now attest to,_" Xavier replied. _"John, we're all flawed, Stryker was no more evil for doing what he did to mutants than Erik was for trying to do the same thing to humans. Please, just let Jimmy go and talk to me."_

Pyro then looked back at Leech. Yellow eyes met blue ones and he narrowed his glare at the green skinned boy.

"Let me go?" Jimmy pleaded quietly.

As Jimmy looked desperately up at his captor, the older boy's façade finally cracked. He let go of Jimmy's arm.

"Get out of here." Pyro told him.

_"What are you doing, John?"_ Xavier asked.

"Consider this my last favor for the X-Men."

Back outside, the X-Men continued their fight against Madrox but knew it was a loosing battle despite the combined efforts of the team. Madrox just continued making more copies of himself. Sooner or later, the X-Men were going to run out of energy.

Iceman froze several copies solid but got tackled by one from behind. Wolverine also got taken down and was being stomped on by several copies. Two copies of Madrox held Beast's arms behind his back as another one hammered him in the face.

Storm flu through the air, firing lightning bolts at the copies before one jumped on a car, leaped into the air, grabbing her ankle and pulled her to the ground where she was ambushed.

Rogue continued fighting, kicking a copy of Madrox in the groin before she finally got taken down as well.

"Get off me!" Rogue yelled.

"You're pretty." Madrox grinned as he sat on her waist.

Rogue then looked at her hands and realized she still had her gloves on. She quickly used her teeth to skin off one glove and then pressed her bare hand to his cheek.

Madrox gasped and suddenly, all of the copies stopped moving. Rogue must have been draining the original one.

"I'm sorry." She whispered and after a few more seconds she finally let go and Madrox collapsed, as did all the copies before they disappeared and there was only one left.

As the X-Men collected themselves, Magneto looked towards the Juggernaut, knowing the team was far too worse for where to handle him now.

"Juggernaut…finish them."

"My pleasure." He growled.


	25. Enough For Now

XXXXXX

In the hallway of the building, Gambit, Psylocke, and Quills led Worthington up a stairwell, taking him to the roof.

"Please don't kill me!" Worthington pleaded.

"You mean the way you've killed all these mutants?" Psylocke asked.

"No one's died because of this cure! And I never meant for it to come to this! The cure was meant to be for those mutants who wanted it!"

"Yeah…they're called the weak ones." Gambit responded.

They continued to climb the stairs until they reached a door that took then to the roof. Gambit grabbed the back of Worthington's suit and walked him over to the edge. Worthington gasped as he looked down and saw just how long a way down it was.

"We've had quite enough, Mr. Worthington."

He then shoved him and Worthington fell, but suddenly, at the last second Angel swooped in and scoops him up, saving him from death.

Worthington looked at his son in shock.

"Warren!"

"It's okay, dad. I've got you." Angel said.

Angel continues flying until he's a safe distance away from the building and set his father down on the street.

"Warren, I'm sorry. I…I was wrong."

"It's all alright."

He spread his wings.

"I have to go back."

"Alright. Just come back to me, okay?"

"Yeah."

Angel then took off into the sky as Worthington watched in awe.

Meanwhile, outside of the Worthington Industries building, Juggernaut charged at the X-Men like Magneto directed him to do and ran straight at Wolverine. He knocked him to the ground with one punch, not even losing stride. He then picked Wolverine up with one hand and throws him through the wall of another nearby building.

He then stepped through the hole that was created and grabbed Wolverine by the back of his uniform and tossed him up towards the ceiling. Wolverine crashed through it and then back through another section to the ground. Juggernaut then ran and kicked him straight through the wall back onto the street.

The skies then darkened as Storm took to the air. She then spun like a tornado as she rushed towards Juggernaut, striking him with lightning bolts that bounced off his armor harmlessly.

Juggernaut growled as he remembered that it was Storm that stopped him last time. He walked over until he reached a car and picked it up effortlessly. He then tossed it up at Storm who dodged it at the last moment. With her eyes still rolled in the back of her head, she formed another tidal wave that nailed Juggernaut, but when the water washed away, it showed that it hadn't even budged the large mutant.

Storm then flu down to where Beast, Iceman, Nightcrawler, and Rogue where standing.

"We need to get his helmet off!"

Iceman nodded as he then sent a thick wave of frost at the Juggernaut, freezing his feet to the ground as Storm continued to strike him with lightning bolts. In his distraction, Nightcrawler teleported behind him and undid two of the buckles to his helmet.

"Hey!"

Juggernaut reached behind him and grabbed Nightcrawler and when he had him in his grip he began strangling him. Beast roared and launched himself at Juggernaut but he merely swatted him away, sending him flying into a parked car.

Nightcrawler gasped for air, in his panic and lack of air he forget all about the possibility of teleporting away. Juggernaut tightened his grip until one of his arms was stabbed.

Wolverine pulled back and went to stab him again, but went upwards and sliced his helmet, taking out another one of the buckles.

Juggernaut threw Nightcrawler away and grabbed Wolverine. He broke out of the ice and lifted Wolverine over his head, before dropping him back first over his knee, sending a sickening crack through the air as Wolverine screamed in pain.

"Logan!" Rogue screamed.

Juggernaut laughed but didn't notice Angel flying behind him. Angel swooped down and snatched the helmet right off his head.

"My helmet!" Juggernaut shouted.

"Cain."

Juggernaut spun around when he heard someone say his name and saw Charles Xavier, sitting in his wheelchair right behind him. He smirked and tried to walk towards him but his eyes widened in shock when he felt Xavier's presence in his mind. The helmet that shielded his mind was no longer on.

Despite that, Juggernaut continued to walk forward. Xavier closed his eyes and concentrated harder.

"If things had been different, we might have been friends...we might have truly been brothers." Xavier said to Juggernaut telepathically.

Juggernaut growled as he and Xavier locked eyes.

"But you would have it no other way! This final chapter was written when we first met, this is the only way it could have ended."

Finally, Cain lost his strength and collapsed on the floor, unconscious.

Xavier took a deep breath and wiped away a bit of sweat from his brow. From the sidelines, Magneto had seen the whole thing and growled when he saw the Juggernaut defeated. Just then, Pyro, Gambit, Psylocke, and Quills appeared at his side.

"The doctor is dead." Gambit told him.

"So is the boy." Pyro lied.

Magneto took a deep breath as he heard the sounds of many sirens coming this way. He looked back at Pyro.

"The boy is dead?"

"Yes." Pyro swallowed nervously and looked towards Callisto, hoping she wouldn't detect his presence.

"Kavita Rao is dead?"

"I killed her myself." Quills said.

"Alright." Magneto said. The boy…the source of the cure was dead. Dr. Kavita Rao, the creator of the cure was dead. Pyro blew up the cure clinic yesterday…their mission was complete. The cure had been destroyed. He then looked towards the Worthington building. "Pyro, start a fire."

Pyro sent a line of fire at the building, which blew the windows out and the building exploded, starting a massive fire. From across the street, Magneto and Xavier locked eyes for a moment before the leader of the Brotherhood said;

"Alright, let's go."

The Brotherhood then fled the area, getting away before the authorities arrived. Beast saw them leaving and ran to the Professor.

"Magneto is leaving."

Xavier nodded.

"That sound's like a good idea."

Nightcrawler then began teleporting the X-Men one by one up the jet until they were all there and it took off into the sky, just as the cops arrived at the burning building.


	26. The Once And Future King

XXXXXX

The following morning at the mansion Warren was showing showing his dad around the school. Worthington Senior was marveled by the size of the place, as well as all the mutants that were here.

"Seems like quite a place." Worthington said as the tour was over.

"Yeah, it is." Warren agreed.

"Are you sure you want to stay here?"

Warren nodded.

"Okay. It's fine with me."

"You mean it?" Warren smiled.

"Of course." Worthington responded. "You were right, I have been hiding you away all your life. When Kavita came to me about a cure for mutation, I wasn't just thinking about you, you know? I was thinking about all mutants."

"Really?"

"Yes. I thought it would be a start to ending all the bigotry out there. I couldn't imagine why anyone would still want to be a mutant if there was a cure out there for it. Now I do."

"Thanks, dad."

Warren reached out and gave his father a tight hug. Standing by the entrance of the school, both Ororo and Hank were watching the exchange and they both smiled a little.

"I think Mr. Worthington understands us a little bit better." Ororo spoke.

"Yes." Hank then took a deep breath. "Well, Ororo. I have to admit if felt good putting that X-Men vest on, one more time. But now my place is in Washington."

"I know. I hope you being a part of the President's cabinet will be a start to better relations between humans and mutants."

"I hope so too."

Before the two could hug, Jimmy came running down the stairs.

"Ms. Munroe!"

Ororo laughed as she picked him up in her arms and gave him a hug.

"It's good to be back." Jimmy smiled.

"We're happy to have you, we missed you." Ororo smiled as she sat him down. "Jimmy, this is Hank McCoy, he works for the government."

"Hi."

"Hello there, son." Hank smiled. He extended his hand to shake Jimmy's but suddenly the blue fur on his hand disappeared and it became a normal, human hand. Hank stared at it, transfixed.

"Sorry." Jimmy apologized. "Sometimes I can't control it."

"No, it's quite alright."

Hank continued turning his hand over, staring at it. Ororo smiled as Hank looked back at Jimmy.

"You have an amazing gift. It was nice to meet you, Jimmy."

"You too."

Henry then turned away and left the mansion as Ororo led Jimmy to her classroom that other kids were entering.

His vision was blurry when he opened his eyes and was blinded by the around and saw that he was in the infirmary of the mansion.

"Deja-vu." He muttered to himself.

"Hey,Logan. You're awake."

Rogue walked over to his table and smiled down at him.

"What happened?"Loganasked.

"The Juggernaut broke your back. You've been asleep for a day now, it took you all night to heal."

"Can I sit up?"

"Yeah. You should be okay now."

Loganslowly lifted himself up and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Is the kid okay?"

"Oh…yeah. We brought him back here. Apparently Magneto sent John to kill him but the Professor was able to talk him out of it."

"That's good."

Rogue nodded.

"So…are you gonna stick around this time?"

"I don't know." He replied truthfully.

She put her head down, she felt somewhat sorry for him.

"Why?" She asked bitterly. "I thought you wanted to help us get ready."

"Rogue, you are ready. All you guys did great out there."

Logan made eye contract with her, letting her know that he meant it.

"You were the one who told me to give the school a chance." She reminded him, ironically.

"Things change Rogue, I still really don't know who I am." He retorted.

"You're not the only one." She said softly. "I guess I know what it's like to be an outcast."

Logan frowned.

"I know that you lost your chance to take the cure. Maybe one day you'll be able to control it on your own." He said, trying to comfort her. "Don't give up hope."

She nodded and went to walk out of the infirmary.

"Rogue."

She turned to look at him.

"I'll be around." He confirmed.

He watched her walk out and as soon as she left the Professor wheeled himself in.

"Professor."

"Hello, Logan."

"Thank you for leading the team out there."

He looked down for a moment before smiling.

"You don't have to thank me."

Xavier nodded before continuing.

"If you decide to stick around or not, you know that you will always be welcome here."

Logan just watched as Xavier turned himself around the left the infirmary. Meanwhile, Rogue had continued on until she reached the elevator. Rogue took it up to the second floor and went to her room. As soon as she walked in, she went over to the drawer and opened it up.

Rogue took out the sample of the cure in the flask with the Worthington logo she found in the war room. She had no idea how it got there, or who had brought it, all she knew was that it was the last sample of the cure.

She continued to stare at for a few more moments before taking a deep breath and putting it back in her drawer.


	27. X4

XXXXXX

_We are all like the stars, all entitled to an eclipse. All is well, provided the light returns and the eclipse does not become an endless night. Dawn and resurrection are synonymous. The reappearance of the light is the same as the survival of the soul._

XXXXXX

It was late in the evening as Warren Worthington Senior stepped into the boardroom as the eleven other executives took their seats as Worthington walked to the chair at the head of the table, taking a quick glance at everyone before taking his seat.

"Gentleman, thank you all for staying later to address a few concerns with the company."

One of the men then spoke up.

"I have to imagine this concerns the dip in the stock, Warren. As you know the company lost a lot of money when you decided to invest in that pharmaceutical company."

"Yes, there's that." Worthington sighed. "But that's not why I called on all of you."

"What is it then?"

"The government is interested in our steel. They apparently want to order an extravagant amount that will put us right back to where we were, prephaps even better."

"So what's the hesitation?" Another executive asked.

"Well the Secretary of Defense is the one who wants it. I had a back round check done on him and it turns out he has a very anti-mutant history."

The others in the room were silent since they knew that Worthington's son was a mutant.

"I'm just concerned what his agenda might be."

Meanwhile, downstairs in the foyer of the building two guards were were sitting at a small table playing cards when the king of clubs card was suddenly tossed on the table unnoticed. That was until it started glowing and the guards looked at each other.

"What the hell?"

_BOOM!_

The card exploded sending both men flying backwards. The glass of the front door then shatters, sending shards of glass everywhere. Footsteps were then heard as one of the guards looks up to see Gambit stepping through the doorframe, pulling out his metal staff.

"Stop right there!"

The guard runs towards him while pulling out his nightstick but Gambit easily sidesteps him and knocks him in the back of the head. Gambit then pulled out another card from his jacket pocket, charged it and threw it at the other guard, sending him crashing through the wall.

Another guard ran out of the security room but was quickly taken out by a roundhouse kick by Gambit. When the guard fell to the floor, Gambit lifted up his leg again and brough his foot crashing down on the other man's throat.

Back upstairs in the meeting room, Worthington and the others looked at each other in confusion as two more explosions went off downstairs which shook the building.

Worthington was the most afraid, remembering Magneto's attack not long ago.

"What was that?" He asked out loud.

Raymond Goin, one of the executives got up from his seat and ran over to the door.

"I'll go see." He said as he opened up the door and ran out into the hall. But he soon collided with a figure. He slowly looked up to see a man staring down at him...but it wasn't a man. He had a man's body, but his face was a dark purple, his eyes completely red. A small red triangle on his forehead.

Meanwhile, back in the room the men were still shaken. One of them then spoke up;

"You don't think it could be-"

He is suddenly cut off as he goes silent. All the other men go still as well, frozen like living statues, all except for Worthington. Outside, a boot steps over the body of the executive before pushing the door open. Worthington's eyes widen in shock when Sinister walks into the room.

"Hello, Mr. Worthington." He smirked.

Sinister was almost seven feet tall and wearing a black cloak as he walked further into the room. Worthington tried to get up but something, like an invisible hand pushed him back down.

"Please, don't get up on my account."

Sinister glided across the room until he was standing in front of the other man.

"Who…who are you?" Worthington stammered.

"That's none of your concern right now. I just have a question for you." He said while taking a seat on the desk, never once taking his eyes off the other man.

"Wh...what?"

"You once invested in Dr. Kavita Rao. Where is she now? Where can I find her?"

Worthington shook his head.

"She's dead. She was killed when Magneto attacked the building two months ago."

Sinister turned his head, giving him a death glare as he took in the information.

"I swear it's the truth!"

Getting to his feet, Sinister flexed his hand into a fist.

"Please...I'm not lying-"

"I believe you." Sinister then said.

Worthington breathed a sigh of relief but Sinister smirked.

"But it's not going to save you."

Sinister then locked eyes with Worthington.

"Choke yourself."

Worthington then wrapped his hands around his throat as tight as he could. Sinister continued to stare at him as Worthington rapidly turned red. After a few more seconds the blood vessels broke in Worthington's eyes as he then stopped struggling and went still.

Sinister got up and walked out of the door. Gambit was waiting outside for him, the younger mutant had a far away look in his eyes.

"Come along Gambit, it looks like we're going to have to find another scientist."

Once he was gone, the others in the meeting room suddenly woke up. One of the men looked over and saw Worthington's body.

"Oh my god, Warren!"

He jumped out of his seat and ran towards him. He pulled his hands away from his neck and check his pulse.

"Christ, he's not breathing! Someone get help!"

One of then ran to phone the police but it was too late. Worthington was already dead.

It took the ambulance ten minutes to arrive at the building. The paramedics carried Worthington's body out on a stretcher as a crowd gathered on the street to watch what was happening. But from a far distance away, three figures stood watching the whole thing as well, being careful not to catch anyone's attention. Magneto was standing there with Pyro and Callisto at his side.

"Gambit is gone." Callisto said. "So is the other mutant."

"I expected as much." Magneto responded as he gave the Worthington building once last glance before turning away.

"I don't understand." Pyro began. "Why was Worthington targeted? The cure was destroyed."

"We'll just have to keep searching for them."


	28. Circus Chaos

XXXXXX

Later that night, the shadows of five figures were seen on the sidewalk as they were walking towards their destination of the arena where the cirus was being held. Ororo was slightly ahead of the others as Bobby, Rogue, Peter, Warren, and Kitty walked behind her.

"I can't believe we're actually doing something normal tonight." Warren remarked.

"Tell me about it." Peter agreed. "These Danger Room sessions are wiping me out."

Ororo overheard the two of them and smiled.

"Well, Logan and I both agreed you all deserve it. You've all done extremely well."

"Thank you Ms. Munroe." Bobby said.

She turned his head to look at him.

"I told you can call me Ororo from now on."

"Sorry, old habits."

"Speaking of Danger Room sessions." Kitty then spoke up. "When am I going to get the chance to train with you guys?"

"Trust me, Kitty. It's not as fun as you might think." Rogue responded.

"Listen to Rogue." Ororo agreed. "You should enjoy being young."

"I'm only two years younger then them." Kitty said, a little too defensively.

"I know. You'll get your chance soon enough, I promise."

Kitty smiled and nodded as the group entered the arena, passing a poster with a picture of a demonic looking performer on it with the text, "The Incredible Nightcrawler".

As they all walked down to their seats and sat with the rest of the crowd the lights go down and a spotlight appears in the center ring. Holding a microphone, the Ringmaster walked in and addressed the crowd.

"And now ladies and gentleman, children of all ages! I give you...the Incredible Nightcrawler!"

The spotlight swings up high, near the ceiling, where stands Nightcrawler. His tail protrudes from the back of his red and black costume. He waves to the audience, then leaps to the swing in the center of the tent. The group all began clapping and whistling upon seeing him.

"And now, remove the nets!" The Ringmaster shouted.

Several crew members took the nets away. Kurt took a deep breath, and swings from one swing to the next. He grabs a third with his tail, then swings upward. He falls, fast, nearly hitting the ground.

Then he disappears. The audience gasps, then applauds as he reappears on the platform from which he started, bowing deeply. A deep smile came over Ororo's face as she clapped.

"This freak is gonna make me a fortune." The Ringmaster said to himself as Kurt then leaped from one platform to the next.

Suddenly, the tent tears below Kurt, as a large fat man and several carnies enter the floor. The audience claps at first, until a man, The Blob, knocks out the Ringmaster and takes his microphone.

"Listen up people!" The mutant yelled over people's screams. "This is the Blob speaking! We're here for your money and jewelry! Hand it over peacefully and you won't get hurt!"

A half of dozen men in ski masks then made their way into the audience with guns pointed as the snatched people's wallets and other belongings.

The kids then looked towards Ororo who motioned for them to get up.

"Let's go."

Warren shook his head as they all crouched as low as they could.

"I knew this was going too well."

But just then, one of Blob's men swung the spotlight over to them.

"What's this?" Blob yelled. "Some people think they can get away?"

The group spun around as the men began approaching them on both sides. Suddenly, Colossus metaled up and punched of the men, knocking him out cold. Bobby quickly froze the steps, making the men coming up after them tumble back down.

Blob smirked when he saw it.

"Other mutants, huh?"

Kitty grabbed a hold of Warren when she saw another guy coming at them and they phased through the steps down to the ground below after that.

Warren gasped.

"Don't ever do that again."

"Whatever." Kitty rolled her eyes.

Back on the steps, Ororo punched one of the men, before being grabbed by someone else. Before he could get a chance to do anything-

BAMF!

Kurt teleported her out of the way, all the way up to the platform near the ceiling.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"What's going on?"

"A mutant is down there. He has men down there trying to rob everyone."

By this time the rest of the crowd was running and screaming as they made their way to the exits as fast as they could. Just then, an angry Blob stomped his way towards Kitty and Warren.

"So, some mutie kids ruined my plans." He said while cracking his knuckles. "I'm going to teach you both a lesson you'll never forget."

"Muties"? Are you kidding me? No one could be that enormously fat without being a mutant!" Kitty responded.

Warren touched her shoulder.

"Whoa, down girl."

"What the hell did you say to me!" Blob angerily yelled.

Blob then charged at Kitty and phased right through her.

"Oh, gross!" Kitty yelled.

Warren quickly peeled off his shirt and extended his wings. He wrapped his arm around Kitty's waist and took off into the air as Blob came back around and charged at them again.

Back in the stands, Peter, Bobby, and Rogue were fighting off the rest of Blob's men. Rogue's eyes widened when she saw one of them take out a switchblade and went right for Bobby.

"Bobby watch out!"

Bobby spun around but tripped over his feet and ended up tumbling down the stairs. Rogue then ripped off a glove and touched the man's arm. The horrible feeling of draining someone's life force then went through Rogue as the man dropped to the floor. She then lowered herself to the floor, covering her mouth, hating what she could do with a simple touch.

On the floor of the arena, Bobby was picking himself up when he heard the rumbling on the ground as Blob charged after him.

Bobby shoots a jet of ice at the ground under Blob's feet. Blob trips and falls, shaking the ground. Blob growled and got to his feet.

Kurt then teleported onto his back and covered Blob's eyes with his three-fingered hands.

"Peek-a-boo!"

Blob reached up and tossed Kurt away as a strong wind whipped around them all. Storm came down from the top of the arena, her eyes burn white as she manipulates the weather around her.

The wind pummels Blob, threatening to move him. Soon, snow and hail join it, pelting him. He grimaces, but remains firmly planted in place. Slowly, Blob lifts a half inch off the round. It is enough. Storm's winds send him flying yards away, crashing into a nearby booth.

"Bobby, freeze him!" She shouted.

Bobby extended his hand, and ice restrains Blob to the ground. Storm landed on the ground, visibly strained.

"Well, that's that."

Warren then landed with Kitty.

"We were kinda holding our own, don't you think?"

Storm smiled.

"I'm proud of you Kitty, very proud."

Peter then ran down the steps to join the rest of them.

"Guys I hear sirens, I think we better get out of here."

"I agree."

Kurt then teleported them out of the arena as Blob continued to struggle and curse in his ice restraints.

The group arrived back at the school in the van they took to get there. As soon as they parked they exited out and Ororo walked up to Kurt.

"That was amazing."

"Thank you. It was nice of Mr. McCoy to get me the job. Sorry you didn't get to see the whole show."

"It's alright, it wasn't your fault."

Ororo then leaned forward and gave Kurt a light kiss on the cheek.

In the foyer of the school, Bobby and Rogue were walking behind Warren and Kitty until they turned a corner and started walking in a different direction. Bobby cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Rogue, thanks for saving me back there."

"Don't mention it."

"Are you okay?"

"I had to drain someone's life force. How do you think I am?"

"Well…uh…"

Before Bobby could speak again Logan appeared out from the doorway of the kitchen. Rogue hurried ahead so she could talk to him causing Bobby to sigh in frustration and continue to the stairs.

""Did you guys have a good time?" Logan asked.

"Not exactly." Rogue responded.

"What happened?"

"Some mutant attack the place, but we took care of it."

Logan nodded.

"Good. Looks like all the training is paying off."

"So, have you decided yet?" Rogue asked, changing the subject.

"I will in the morning."

"Logan…please stay."

"If I leave…I promise I will say goodbye first."

Rogue looked at him with pleading eyes but Logan just sighed and moved around her.

"Goodnight, kid."


	29. A New Leader

XXXXXX

The following morning, Logan was sitting on the bed inside his room fully dressed. One bag was sitting next to him as he sat in silence, deep in thought. He then ran his fingers over the knuckles of his left hand before he took a deep breath and finally pushed himself up to his feet.

He grabbed his bag and slowly walked over to the door. Opening it up, he turned around and looked it over one last time before finally stepping out and closing the door behind him.

Meanwhile, in the office of Charles Xavier several students were sitting around his desk, Kitty Pryde right up front as the Professor continued his lesson on mutant ethics.

"Orwell wrote that power corrupts, and that absolute power, corrupts absolutely. This is lesson that every one of us must learn, and live. Why?"

Several hands go up, Kitty's included. Xavier smiled.

"Kitty, how about you?"

"Because we're mutants."

"I'm disappointed, Kitty. I'd have thought you'd see the flaw in Orwell's generalization."

Kitty raised an eyebrow.

"How d'you mean?"

"Well, unfortunately, students, there are no absolutes when it comes to the issue of ethics." Xavier continued. "For psychics like myself, it presents a particular dilemma. Our power is, by its very nature, an invasive one. When is it okay to use it, and when do we cross that invisible line that turns us into tyrants over our fellow man?"

"Well, Professor, if the line is invisible, then how do we know we've crossed it?"

Xavier smiles just a bit as the rest of the class laughed.

"Despite her cheek, Miss Pryde does have a point."

He turned on a monitor.

"This case was forwarded to me by a colleague of mine, Dr. Moira MacTaggart."

Everyone begins to take notes. Kitty glances over at Weezie, whose power transcribes words with just the wave of her hand. Kitty makes a face, wishing she could do that. Instead, she pulls out her pen and writes 'Moira MacTaggert' on the heading of her paper.

On the screen, Moira stood next to a patient completely covered in bandages. She turned to face the screen and began speaking.

"The man you see here was born with no higher level brain functions. His organs and nervous system function normally, but he has no consciousness to speak of. This has been confirmed both by the most advanced medical scans available on MuirIsland, and of course by your telepathic examination, Charles."

Moira smiled a bit and Xavier paused the transmission.

"What if, class, what if we could transfer the consciousness of one person, say, a father of four with terminal cancer, into the body of this man? How are we to decide what is in the range of ethical behavior, and what is best left…"

Xavier trailed off and looks towards the door where he sees Logan standing outside the classroom.

"…to God. Excuse me, class, we'll continue this tomorrow. Miss Pryde, I expect fervent debate."

"You got it." Kitty smiled.

The class got up and exited the room and once everyone was gone, Logan walked in and took a seat.

"Good morning Logan." Xavier greeted.

Logan nodded.

"Professor."

"Are you heading out?"

"Yeah...I guess I am."

"Are you sure that's the best decision?"

"You're the psychic, you tell me." Logan responded.

"Sometimes the mind needs to figure out things for itself."

Logan smirked as he remembered how the Professor once told him that before.

"Well, since the kids have been trained I don't think you need me around anymore."

"Where will you go?"

"I'm not sure."

Xavier nodded as silence came over the two of them. After a few seconds, another question came to the Professor.

"Logan...do you still think about your past?"

"Not really." Logan answered after taking a deep breath. "I use to have nightmares…I don't have them anymore. I'm just trying to figure out where to go from here."

"Why is it that you don't want to stay here?"

"I just don't think it's right for me."

"Why is that?"

The other mutant rubbed the back of his head.

"I don't know...something's just not right. I just feel...lost. I really can't explain it."

Logan trailed off again and took a deep breath. Right then, the Professor decided to make him an offer.

"I have a deal for you Logan. Remain here for six months, and if you still decide you wish to leave us, then so be it. I won't try to stop you."

"Six months? What am I going to do for six months?"

"You'll the lead the team."

Logan raised an eyebrow.

"Lead the team? You want me to be the leader?

Xavier nodded.

"Yes. Ororo and I agree that you did a tremendous job in getting the kids ready. But they still need someone they can look to, and I feel that person is you. And then, maybe you'll find what it is you're looking for."

"What about Scott?"

"Scott isn't here. The younger members need someone to look up to, to guide them. I feel that person could be you."

Logan looked at Xavier for a moment before getting to his feet and extending his hand.

"Alright...you've got a deal."

Smiling, Xavier shook Logan's hand.

Just as the two of them finished their meeting, Kitty was walking down the hall and saw Rogue standing by one of the windows, gazing out at the clouds.

"Hey Rogue." She greeted. "That was some night wasn't it?"

"Yeah." Rogue responded with fake cheerfulness. "I'm getting use to it."

"I'll bet. I wish I was part of the team, then I could be with you guys all the time."

Rogue then thought back to the other night, absorbing that man's life force and sighed as she moved away from the window, Kitty following her.

"It's not as fun as you might think, Kitty."

As the two turned the corner, rear the entrance of the rec room, Bobby was standing there talking with Peter. He briefly made eye contact with Rogue before she hurried along to the stairs.

"Are you and Bobby still...huh." Kitty then began thinking about the right word to use, but Rogue answered.

"Yeah. I think we're over, it's just that neither one of us has said it yet."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Kitty said as they reached the top of the stairs. "Well, catch you later."

Once she was in her own room, Rogue pulled off her gloves and layed down on her bed. She stared up at the ceiling for a minute before rolling over and going to the drawer of her dresser.

Opening it up, she reached under the clothes before pulling up the flask which contained the last sample of the cure. She looked at it everyday, and still she couldn't find the answer as to why she hadn't taken it yet.

Sitting back down, Rogue continued to stare at the flask as she held it tighter in her hands. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door causing Rogue to dive backwards and hide the flask under her pillow.

"Come on in."

Logan then opened the door and stepped in. Rogue noticed that he was fully dressed and prepared herself for the worst.

"Are you saying goodbye?"

Logan smiled.

"No...I'm saying hello. The Professor wants to be the new leader of the team."

"You're going to be the leader?" Rogue asked as she stood up. "Permanently?"

"I guess so."

"So you're staying."

"I'm staying."

Rogue smiled and walked forward. She threw her arms around Logan's neck, hugging him but being mindful of her powers. After she pulled away he then gave her a look.

"Now what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Don't you think it's time to break things off with Bobby?"

Rogue looked at the ground.

"I...I don't know why-"

"You don't think I've seen the two of you?" Logan asked.

Rogue sighed.

"I'm afraid to go through with it."

"I know, but you guys can't be like this forever."

"I know."

"I'm here for you." Logan said as he walked back to the door. "Remember that."


	30. Highway Rescue

XXXXXX

The sun had just set over the tall green hills. Traveling down the highway, a convoy carrying mutant prisoners carried on while being led by several SUV's. Inside one of the cars, Officer Shane yawned as he continued to drive.

"How much longer are we going to drive these guys around?" Officer Bradley asked.

"Don't know." Shane replied. "They said they wanted to keep these guys mobile so Magneto couldn't get to them."

They headed down a turn before they were back on another long stretch of highway. However, down the road a figure could be seen standing in the middle of the street. It was Magneto who narrowed his eyes for a moment before extending an open palm, then closes it, crushing one of the SUVs leading the convoy.

He did the same to the second car, sending the remains of both off to the side of the road. Magneto lifted both hands, flipping the tanker before forcing the convoy to a halt.

Walking off from the grass, Pyro came over to Magneto and the two of them both approached the convoy. Magneto extended his hand and gestured grandly to the left and the reinforced door flied off. A guard from inside went for his gun but Pyro manipulated his deadly flame and scorched his body.

When the guard's charred body hit the ground, Magneto and Pyro stepped on board the convoy.

"I don't understand why we're breaking these guys out." Pyro said as he stepped over the guard's body. "I thought we were looking for Gambit."

"Just a minor break from the plan." Magneto responded as he looked at the two cells on board. "We could use more soldiers to help us."

He then used his powers to rip off the cell door and standing before him was his old protégé, Mortimer Toynbee, better known to him as Toad.

"Magneto." Toad nearly gasped as he stepped out of his cell. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"Toad." Magneto greeted with a nod. "It's been some time."

"What took you so long? I thought you'd never get me out."

Magneto glared at the other mutant.

"I've been busy. A lot has happened since you were arrested."

Toad then turned his head to look at Pyro.

"Who's this?"

"Pyro." Pyro simply said, not bothering to extend his hand to greet the other mutant.

"So you decided to recruit a kid?"

"This 'kid' has done more for the cause then you ever did." Pyro responded.

Toad walked closer towards him and looked him up and down.

"You sure about that?"

"Enough." Magneto said before going to the second cell. He extended his hand and the door opened up, revealing a mutant grossly overweight.

"What do they call you?" Magneto asked.

"Blob." The mutant answered.

"I can't imagine why."

Magneto then used his powers to rip off the chains, causing Blob to fall to the ground with a massive thud.

"I think you'd make a fine addition to our army."

"Oh yeah?"

Toad then looked around.

"Where's Mystique?"

"She's dead." Magneto said with no emotion before turning away. "Come along, we have work to do."

"How did she die?" Toad asked, looking a little shocked from the news. They all stepped off the convoy but Magneto didn't answer. Pyro sighed and decided to tell him himself.

"She was cured. After that she didn't want to live anymore and asked Magneto to kill her. He did."

"Ah the cure. I heard about that in prison." Toad said while rubbing his chin. "Whatever happened with that?"

"We took care of it."

The four of them traveled to a pier where a boat waited for them. On the boat, Callisto, Psylocke, and Quills were waiting. When the four of them stepped on the boat, Magneto began speaking.

"This is Callisto." He said while gesturing to her. "She has the ability to track any mutant on the planet, she's the reason I was able to find you."

"So what are we doing?" Toad asked. "Where do we go from here?"

"One of our team mates, Gambit, went missing two weeks ago." Pyro explained. "Every time we try to find him he ends up gone just when we get to his location."

"It's more than just that." Callisto continued. "I detect that he's always around another mutant, a strong one. One that's just as powerful as Magneto. We have a feeling he is the one who attacked the Worthington building the other night. Naturally, the authorities believe we were the ones responsible."

"We need to find this mutant." Magneto spoke. "Find him and figure out what he is after."

When no one spoke again, Magneto turned and nodded towards Quills who started up the boat and began taking it in the direction of the Brotherhood's new hideout.

When they reached the island, Psylocke tied the boat to the pier while the others headed inside. They all walked down the hallway when suddenly Callisto put her hand up to her temple and addressed the Brotherhood's leader.

"Magneto, I've picked up the mutant's trace again."

Magneto sighed.

"We can't go out again tonight. We'll have to wait for another opportunity."

Pyro looked at his leader strangely, he sounded out of breath. He then followed him into his office. Magneto sat down at his desk and took a deep breath as he gently rubbed his chest.

"Magneto? Are you alright?"

"I'm tired, Pyro." He responded. "I think father time is finally starting to catch up with me."

The younger man cocked his head as he continued looking at him. Magneto was so larger than life, he never really thought of him as an old man...but the truth is, he was.

"You know, I could take the group out." Pyro began. "Try to find this guy."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I said no." Magneto snapped. "Now if you'll excuse me."

"Fine."

After Pyro turned and left the office, Magneto closed his eyes before taking another deep breath.

Elsewhere, in a darkened laboratory, Sinister was sitting in a rotating chair while holding up a vial of clear liquid. He looked over to where Gambit was standing at the door and began speaking.

"We're one step closer, Gambit." He began. "One step closer to releasing it into the open."

Gambit had a far away look in his eyes and wasn't even paying attention to the other mutant as he spoke.

Sinister then got to his feet.

"Come along. This virus is going to need one last thing in order to work."


	31. Visiting Ghosts

XXXXXX

When the sun rose the following morning in Washington D.C. a black Bentley pulled up in the parking lot of a building the read 'Department of Mutant Affairs' on the front. Henry McCoy stepped out of the car and approached the door of the building, thinking about all the hard work he and his staff had done over the past few months.

Since getting the job on the President's staff he had done his best to improve relations between humans and mutants, and so far it had gone well. There were far less protests against mutants, there was no more talk of a mutant registration act, and he had helped catch several criminals, both mutant and human alike…though one was still out there and it was going to take a lot more than just one S.W.A.T team to catch him.

Stepping through the door, Hank walked to his office while taking a quick glance at the members of his staff at their desks, all on the phone. There was a lot of commotion, same as any other day. Some of them still looked at him strange, but Hank was use to the stare.

But as he continued to walk, he saw the chief member of his staff, Bishop, a large black mutant with curly brown hair coming towards him, a look of seriousness on his face.

"Hank, there appears to be a situation."

That was nothing new to the other mutant.

"Bishop." Hank greeted. "What is it?"

"Worthington Industries was attacked two nights ago. And the head of the company, Warren Worthington Senior was killed."

Hank cocked his head at Bishop after being told the news.

"Worthington Industries?"

"Yes sir. We've interviewed some witnesses but they claim they didn't see anything. We collected their security tapes and are reviewing them as we speak."

"That's good, Bishop. Very good."

"As you know, the department of defense is going to think that Magneto was responsible."

"Ah yes, the usual suspect. But what I don't understand is why Worthington Industries? Why now? The cure was destroyed."

"I don't know." Bishop responded. "Maybe Magneto was taking care of some unfinished business. Worthington Senior was one of his targets, wasn't he?"

"Perhaps." Hank said while rubbing his chin. "Anyway, is there anything else I need to know?"

"Secretary Trask is waiting for you in your office."

Hank sighed.

"Thanks for the head's up."

Heading to the door of his office, Hank took a deep breath before grabbing the door handle and walking in. Sitting in one of the chairs across from the desk was the Secretary of Defense, Bolivar Trask.

"Bolivar." Hank said while taking off his jacket and hanging it up on the coat rack. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

"Secretary McCoy." Trask said while standing up. "I've come to let you know that the convoy that was holding two of the mutant prisoners, one who was involved in the Liberty Island incident. The other attacked a circus just the other night. They have escaped and eight federal agents are dead."

"I told you that keeping mutant prisoners mobile was a bad idea."

"Well is case you haven't noticed Hank, we're having a hard time trying to figure out what to do with these mutant prisoners. And with your agency always breathing down our necks about not being cruel towards them we're running low on ideas."

"So what do you suggest?"

"A real facility where we can hold these animals. On some kind of island, not easy to access-"

"That's been tried already. Remember Alcatraz?"

Trask's eyes then went to the side before he smirked and shook his head.

"So what are you doing about Magneto?" He asked, changing the subject.

"We're actively pursuing all leads."

"I'll bet."

"We are. Trying to catch Magneto is not exactly a cake walk, you know?"

Trask then turned to leave. He opened the door and looked back at Hank one last time.

"My department and I are getting impatient. If you don't take the necessary steps in catching this guy, we will."

"It's not a competition Bolivar. You know that Magneto doesn't stay quiet for very long. When he makes his move, we'll be there to apprehend him."

"We'll see."

Right after Trask left Hank took a seat at his desk and began going over the papers his staff prepared for him on a daily basis when the door opened again and Bishop stuck his head in.

"How'd it go?"

"About how you'd expect." Hank responded. "Bishop, could you call Xavier's school, ask for Worthington's son. He needs to know about his father."

"No problem."

XXXXXX

Walking across the grass of a cemetery in the outskirts of Maine, the former leader of the X-Men, Scott Summers held two bouquets of flowers in his hand as he slowly walked in front of two graves. One of the tombstones had the name 'Richard Summers' and the one next to it read the name 'Sandra Summers.'

Scott knelt down as he placed the flowers on the ground of each grave. He continued to stare at both, thinking back to his childhood, back when he was only fourteen when his parents died in a plane accident.

He was riding with them that day with his younger brother Alex, all having a good time when something went wrong with the engine. His parents had placed both him and his brother in the only available parachutes and forced them from the plane just prior to crashing. The last thing he ever saw with his normal vision was the plane exploding.

The head injury he sustained upon hitting the ground caused his powers to manifest and start going off uncontrollable until he was found by Charles Xavier. His brother was taken to an orphanage while he went on to spend the rest of his days at Xavier's school. That was until he lost another important person in his life.

Taking a deep breath, Scott pushed himself back to his feet. There was another grave he needed to visit…one that he'd been putting off going back to.

"_Scott."_

Scott looked up and around his surroundings when he heard it. It was her voice again. He had been hearing it for a few days now, and it was getting stronger each time.

"_Scott…can you hear me?"_

"Jean?" Scott asked himself. He felt like he was going crazy.

In his mind's eye he saw Jean at Alkali Lake, drowning.

_"Scott!"_

The lake parts slightly.

"_I'm still here…"_

Scott shook his head, as though shaking the thoughts away. He left the graveyard and started up his bike to head in the direction of his original destination.


	32. Rise of a Phoenix

XXXXXX

Speeding down the highway, Scott headed down past the expansive woods where Alkali Lake was, still flooded from the X-Men's previous outing there, nearly six months ago.

When he got to the lake, Scott parked his bike and looked out at the water.

_"Scott."_

Scott shook his head again and got up. Slowly he approached the lake and looked across it. It was the lake that took the love of his life away.

In his mind's eye, Jean pushes back the water bursting from the dam with her telekinesis, while simultaneously lifting the X-Jet, with the other X-Men aboard, out of harm's way.

_"It's the only way."_

_"Jean...don't do this." He begged._

_"Goodbye."_

Then, he sees her drowning again.

_"Scott."_

"Stop." Scott said out loud to himself.

_"Scott, help me."_

"Stop it."

The voices in his head grow louder.

He suddenly throws his head back and yells up to the sky.

"STOP!"

Scott violently pulled his shades off and releases the full potential of his optic blasts directly into the lake. The beams tear into the water and cut a huge swath, throwing up a massive wave in either direction. His beams travel across the lake until they hit the remains of the dam.

Scott fires until his energy is completely drained. His optic beams fade out and Scott collapses to his knees, eyes closed. Completely, utterly spent he was breathing heavily. trying to calm himself down. The twin columns of water settle back into the lake and all seems to return to normal.

Silent. Tranquil.

A few bubbles gurgle from the center of the lake. Then more and more, until a whirlpool forms in the center.

A pebble floats in the air and brushes past Scott's cheek. Then another. Then a leaf. Then more and more. All around him, small and large objects levitate into the air until Scott's area is surrounded by a cloud of floating leaves, rocks, boulders, and twigs. Putting his glasses back on, Scott saw what was going on and his brows furrowed in confusion.

"What the hell?" Scott asked himself.

_BOOM!_

A violent explosion erupts from the whirlpool as a large, gleaming object shoots out, creating a titanic blast of water in every direction. The shockwave hits the shore and violently throws Scott back away from the edge. He lands painfully on his back.

A creature of pure energy then rises from the depths. It glows like a living star, emanating wave after wave of telekinetic energy.

The object made of fiery light then forms the shape of a bird with expansive wings. It blinds Scott, who is shielding his eyes. It slowly flies towards him. Inside the bird's mass of light, there was a dark silhouette of a woman wearing a body-hugging outfit. The object settles down at the edge of the outcropping.

Scott stood up painfully to take up a defensive posture against the object. The fires and light fade out, revealing the woman.

It was Jean Grey.

She was alive...reborn. She blinked and few times before she looked down at her limbs, stunned and disoriented.

"A dream...has to be a dream." Scott muttered.

Jean looked up. She seems real. She blinks, slowly recognizing him.

"Scott?"

"Jean…how?"

Jean looks at her glowing limbs again, feeling her power.

"I...I don't know."

Scott slowly takes a step towards Jean, then freezes. His hands are visibly trembling, and his legs are unsteady as his entire body shakes. Jean then smiled.

"You came for me…"

Scott closes the gap, reaches out to Jean and puts his arms around her. To his amazement, she is real and solid and the two move in for a tight, loving embrace. Jean melts into him, smiling and wraps him in his arms. Scott puts his chin on her shoulder and tears slowly roll down his cheeks.

"I thought I lost you, Jean...thought I lost you forever..."

Scott clutches her and holds on like a drowning victim holding onto a life preserver. He squeezes too hard and Jean gasped loudly with a wide-eyed look of alarm. He quickly let go and looked her over.

"What happened? Are you alright?"

Jean lowered herself to the ground and Scott followed. He then remembered.

"Your leg was broken."

"It's not my leg." Jean said while shaking her head. "Something's wrong."

Neither Scott nor Jean noticed a large mass of water starting to vaporize into the air around them, going faster and faster as Jean became more anxious and agitated. Her eyes then started to glow orange and Scott became even more alarmed.

"Jean, what is it?"

"I don't know! I can't-!"

The water vapor then exploded in a blast of telekinetic energy. Scott was catapulted through the air, flying into the trees of the nearby forest. Jean was knocked off the outcropping by the force of the blast and landed on the rocky shoreline, hitting her head on a stone and passing out.

The vapors quickly spread into a thick fog that settles in around Alkali Lake.

XXXXXX

Sitting in the control room watching the X-Kids getting ready for their Danger Room session, Professor Xavier decided to watch on along side Ororo and Logan in order to see just how much the kids have improved over the last few weeks.

"What level should I raise it to?" Ororo asked as she went over the controls.

"Eight." Logan responded.

"Eight? They've never trained on that level before."

"They will today."

Xavier continued looking through the two way mirror when suddenly a pain went through his head causing him to groan loudly and fall out of his wheelchair.

_"Professor!"_

In his mind's eye, he saw Alkali Lake. Then the vision was gone and everything went blank.

"Charles!"

Logan bent down to grab his arm as Ororo jumped out of his chair. She gently took his other arm and helped Logan place Xavier back in his wheelchair.

"What happened?" Logan asked.

"Are you okay?" Ororo gasped, worriedly.

Xavier looked at them, wide eyed.

"We have to get to Alkali Lake."

Logan's brows furrowed.

"Alkali Lake? For what?"

"Now!"

Logan and Ororo exchanged looks for a moment before Ororo went over to the microphone to communicate with the kids in the Danger Room.

"Kids, we're going to have to do this session another time. Something's come up."

After that, the three of them took off to the X-Jet. Ororo took upon the controls and lifted the jet carefully out of the basketball court. Logan looked annoyed as he helped Xavier into a seat before buckling himself up.

"You mind telling me why we're going there?" Logan asked.

"I sensed something." Xavier slowly began. "Something's wrong."

"What?"

"I don't know. I'm trying to concentrate but…something's blocking my telepathy."

"Is it Magneto?"

"No. It's something else."


	33. Finding and Ending Things

XXXXXX

The X-Jet cut through the clouds, and after about fifteen minutes they arrived at Alkali Lake. Ororo set the jet down as gently as possible and lowered the ramp. Logan pushed Xavier's wheelchair down, immediately entering a thick fog.

"I can't see a damn thing." Logan cursed.

"I can fix that." Ororo responded.

Ororo's eyes rolled in the back of her head and the fog quickly dissipates. Logan looked incredulously at the multitude of the floating rocks littering the air. Droplets of water fall upwards from leaves.

"What the hell?"

"Do you sense anything now?" Ororo asked the Professor.

"By the woods."

Logan began making his way towards the woods. He sniffed and he sensed the presence of another person. He suddenly heard a groan and he quickly ran until he saw a man laying on his side on the ground, trying to get back to his feet.

It was Scott.

Running over to his side, Logan gently grabbed him and helped him sit up.

"Scott? What happened? What are you doing here?"

"Jean? Where is she?"

"Jean? What are you talking about?"

"She's alive!" Scott shouted as he limped his way to his feet. Scott nearly collapsed again but Logan caught him and threw his arm over his shoulder, helping him back to the jet. Meanwhile, Ororo was making her way down to the lake when she stopped in her tracks at what she saw…or rather what she didn't see.

The lake…Alkali Lake was gone. The water was completely dried up, what she saw in front of her was a giant land mass.

"Professor!" She yelled.

She ran by the rocks, the last place she left him. When she ran over to him she stopped again at what he was looking down at. A woman.

Jean.

"She's alive." Xavier said.

In disbelief, Ororo went over and dropped down next to her. Jean's eyelids fluttered briefly, but didn't open. That motion but her in action.

"Logan!" She shouted.

Having taken Scott to the jet, Logan ran to the lake after hearing Ororo yell and his eyes widened in shock when he saw Xavier and Ororo in front of the body of Jean Grey.

"Jean?" Logan gasped.

"We have to get her medical attention." Ororo said.

Logan forced himself to move forward and gently picked Jean up, carrying her back to the jet as Ororo pushed Xavier's wheelchair.

"Jean? Is she alright?" Scott asked as he looked around widely as Logan placed her down on the floor of the jet.

"I don't know." Logan responded. "We need to get her back to the mansion."

Once Xavier and Ororo were on the jet, Ororo ran over to the pilot's seat.

"Not to the mansion." Xavier then said, surprising them all. "We need to take her somewhere else."

Meanwhile, back at the mansion Bobby was just stepping out of the changing room after putting his normal clothes back on when Ororo called off the Danger Room session when he saw Rogue walking out in the hallway as well, putting on the white gloves he gave her when they traveled to his house after Striker's men attacked the mansion.

It seemed like ages ago, even though it wasn't that long. He wished he could go back to that time, back when they were still close. BeforeAlkaliLake, before the cure was released. Rogue just noticed him and sent a small smile his way.

"I wonder what that was about." Bobby began, trying to make small talk. "Them rushing out of here so fast."

"I don't know." Rogue responded.

A few moments went by and neither one said anything. Bobby was about to turn around when Rogue's voice stopped him.

"Hey Bobby. I think we need to talk."

Bobby sighed.

"Alright."

"Why don't we go outside?"

They both walked to the outside patio. Rogue bit her bottom lip as she gazed out at Ororo's garden. Bobby cleared his throat and decided to get this out. They both had been putting this off for far too long.

"Rogue…where are we at now?"

Rogue shook her head.

"I don't know. The only time we ever see each other now is when we're doing something in a group, when others are around. I can't even remember the last time we did anything just you and I."

"I know. We've been avoiding each other for a little while now."

"I think it's because neither one of us wants to say it."

"Say what?"

"You know what."

"I know we've both been going through some problems over the past few months. But…we're still together aren't we?"

The both of them didn't say anything after that and Rogue took a deep breath. She was afraid of what she was going to say next because she knew full well what it would do to them.

"I still really care about you. But after we came back fromAlkaliLake, what was going on with you and your parents…and then the cure being released and my issues. I didn't want things to change between us. But I guess it ended up happening anyway."

"I know things have been different between us." Bobby began.

He then saw that Rogue's eyes were starting to water and he knew the writing was on the wall.

"Are you saying that you don't feel the same way about me anymore?"

"Do you really feel the same about me? Like you did before?" Rogue asked.

Swallowing a little, Bobby looked down at his shoes.

"I...you go first."

"You were the first guy I met who I could call my boyfriend and I could honesty say I was in love with." Rogue began.

Bobby nodded.

"Same here."

"I'll never forget the good times we had. I'll always be your teammate, and more importantly, your friend."

Rogue then turned her head away as tears finally began to fall. Bobby himself began to get a knot in his throat.

"Is that all we are now?" He managed to ask. "Just friends?"

Trying to say the words to respond, but it was a struggle for her to force them out.

"Yeah." Rogue finally managed to vocalize the lone word in a low whisper. She continued to look away at Bobby, looking up at the clouds in the sky as Bobby looked at the ground. He then looked up at Rogue and stared at her for a moment before slowly turning away and heading back in.

It was over. It was officially over. Bobby had a feeling that this was going to happen eventually, he just wasn't prepared. He guessed no one in a relationship really was ever ready for when it was time to end it.

Just then, Peter came down the hall and in Bobby's absent mindlessness he nearly ran into him.

"Whoa, watch where you're going buddy." Peter said jokingly before he saw the look on his friend's face. "Are you alright? You look like your going to throw up."

Taking a deep breath, Bobby looked at the taller boy.

"Rogue and I…we're over."

"Oh. I'm sorry man." Peter said while giving Bobby's shoulder a light squeeze. Bobby nodded and managed a small smile.

"It's okay. I'll be okay."

Rogue was still standing outside wiping away tears when Kitty came around the corner along with Jubilation Lee.

"Hey Rogue." Kitty greeted. "We're heading to the mall, want to come."

The two girls then saw her tears and were immediately concerned.

"What happened?" Jubilee asked. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Rogue said while brushing away one last tear. "Me and Bobby, we broke up."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."

"We've been apart for a while now. It's just neither one of us wanted to say it."

"Okay." Kitty then said. "We'll leave you alone-"

"No, I'll go with you guys." Rogue said while smiling. A large weight had been lifted off her shoulders and she needed to do something to take her mind off everything.

As the girls left for the mall, Kurt was making his way through the halls when he passed the Professor's office and heard the phone ringing. Kurt made his way inside and tentatively picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Yes, this is the department of mutant affairs." Bishop began. "Can I speak to Warren Worthington please?"

"Just a moment."

Kurt then teleported himself down the hall to the game room where he last saw Warren playing a game of when he heard the sound of sucking wind from behind him and sighed when Kurt appeared.

"Kurt, you've got to stop doing that."

"There's a call for you."

Taking Warren's arm, Kurt then teleported them both back to the Professor's picked up the phone as Kurt left, giving the teenager some privacy.

"Hello. This is Warren."

"Warren, my name is Bishop. I'm calling on behave of Henry McCoy."

"Oh, Hank. How is he?"

"He's just fine. However, I have some news to report to you son that's...rather unfortunate."

Warren's brows furrowed.

"What is it?"

"Worthington Industries was attacked two nights ago by a mutant. Your father-"

"What about him?"

"I'm sorry, Warren. Your father is dead."

After that, Warren could feel his throat go dry as his mouth hung open in shock. A few moments went by before he was finally able to ask;

"How...who did it?"

"We don't know at the moment. We're investigating it as we speak."

Warren couldn't say anything else and just hung the phone up. His legs felt heavier as he walked towards the mirror the Professor kept in his office and just continued staring at it until he was right in front of it. He continued going over it in his mind…his father was dead.

Balling up his fist, Warren then punched the mirror as hard as he could, sending breaking glass to the floor were it broke into even tinier pieces.

Running back to the room when he heard the noise, Kurt saw Warren crouched on the floor, holding his right hand as it bled from the knuckles.

"Warren! Are you alright?"

Kurt then went to his side and placed his three-fingered hand on his arm but Warren violently pulled it away.

"Of course I'm not alright!"

"What's wrong?"

"My dad is dead." Warren growled as he struggled to hold back tears of anger.

"I'm sorry." Kurt began but the teenager just shook his head.

"Just leave me alone alright."

Warren then got up and stormed out of the office, giving glares to all the younger students who had gathered outside after hearing the noise. He continued holding his bleeding hand as he headed upstairs to his room.


	34. Muir Island

XXXXXX

Off the northern coast of Scotland, a small island laid where a large facility was built upon. The island was known as 'Muir Island' and it was run by an old friend of the Professor's, Dr. Moira MacTaggart.

Walking down the hallway of her son Kevin's room, Moira carried a tray of lunch and medicine for him to take. Once she reached the door, she looked in the glass window seeing her son sitting in bed watching television. Slowly, she opened the door and walked inside.

"Kevin." She greeted. "It's time to take your medicine."

Kevin didn't respond as Moira walked closer to him, placing the tray down on the lamp table. She handed him the pill and a glass of water which Kevin took.

"Are you feeling okay?"

Kevin nodded but again didn't answer.

Moira gently stroked his hair before smiling and getting up, heading back to the main lab.

She took a seat at her desk and began speaking into her recorder as she began typing on her computer.

"Kevin's been unresponsive for three days now." She began. "If it continues I may have to increase his medication."

She typed the strength of the dosage into a timetable she had on the computer. Her son was an extremely powerful and destructive mutant born with a mental illness. The medicine was necessary over the years to keep him calm, but she was starting to worry that it was no longer working.

A she continued to type, suddenly a strong wind blew through the open door causing her to look up. She was shocked to see a blue jet slowly land on the grounds of the facility. She knew who that jet belonged to and she quickly made her way to the outside.

The ramp opened up and Xavier slowly wheeled himself down to the ground. Once he settled, Moira came over to greet him.

"Charles. What an unexpected surprise."

"I'm sorry for just dropping in on you like this Moira." Xavier apologized. "But we need your help."

"What is it?"

"It's something I've never seen before."

Just then, Logan came walking down the steps carrying Jean in his arms.

"Is that Jean?" Moira asked Xavier.

"Yes."

"You told me she was dead."

"She was. Or least I thought she was."

"Do you have some place for her?" Logan asked, irritably.

"Yes, follow me."

As Logan followed Moira into the facility, Ororo came down the ramp with Scott's arm thrown over his shoulder.

"Is she going to be alright, Professor?" Scott asked.

"I don't know, Scott."

Once they all got settled, Scott was being kept in his own room, away from Jean in order to treat his own injuries. Xavier and Ororo stayed with him while Logan waited in the hall.

"I want to be with her, Professor." Scott said.

"I know Scott, but Moira needs space now to examine her. Plus you're in no condition to be on your feet."

"How is she alive Professor? How is it possible?"

"We're going to have to wait to hear from Jean. Find out what she remembers."

Meanwhile, in the room right next to theirs, Moira was hooking up machines to Jean who was laying peacefully on the bed. However, just when she was ready to place an IV in her arm, Jean woke and grabbed Moira's wrist, causing her to jump in surprise.

"Relax." Moira said.

"Where am I?" Jean gasped.

"You're at Muir Island, you're safe." Moira explained as she knelt down next to her. "Jean, do you remember me?"

Jean looked at her and squinted as she looked at the other woman.

"Moira?"

"Yes."

"Where's Scott?"

"He's in a room right next door. He's fine. Jean, what do you remember about Alkali Lake?" She asked as she placed the IV in her arm.

"I remember...the jet. There was water, a mountain of water. It was coming for me..."

Jean then shuttered as the objects in the room began to rattle and shake. Moira looked around in surprise just as the shaking stopped.

"It's okay." Moira said, trying to comfort her. "You're okay now."

"Then things went dark." Jean continued. "I wasn't awake...but I wasn't asleep. I remember calling out to Scott, I felt him close...and then everything was clear again."

Jean then looked at Moira.

"Can I see him?"

"Not just yet. I need to examine you first."

"I think I'm alright." Jean responded. "Just my right leg."

Moira gently touched it and Jean winced.

"Yes, it's probably broken. Just give the morphine a few minutes to work. I'll be right back."

She then left the room and walked into the hallway where Logan was.

"Come with me." She said.

Logan followed Moira into Scott's room. The others looked at her and Scott quickly jumped up.

"How is she?"

"She's awake."

"I want to see her."

"Not yet, Scott." Moira responded. "I want to do a CAT scan on her, just to make sure everything is alright. It should take about an hour."

Moira then turned to leave as Scott looked at the Professor in frustration.

"Professor-"

"Just give it time, Scott."

"I've waited long enough. I thought she was dead."

"We all did." Ororo responded. "I know you want to be with her, just remember she's really here, alive."

Scott stared at her for a moment before nodding and neaning back against the pillow.


	35. Sinister Ideology

XXXXXX

Later that evening, Magneto was standing outside of the Molecular Genetics Laboratory with the rest of the Brotherhood. He continued gazing at the building having a bad feeling about the place. He turned his head to look back at Callisto.

"Gambit is still inside?"

"Yes. The other mutant is in there with him."

"Alright. The rest of you stay out here. If I'm not out in five minutes, something's wrong."

The others stood by and watched their leader walk towards the building and head through the front door. Magneto then froze when he saw dead bodies on the floor, damaged equipment and a small fire on one of the tables.

The facility had an eerie silence as he started moving again, in search of Gambit. He walked down the hallway, following a sign with an arrow pointing to the left that read 'Main Lab.' He kept going as sparks went off from the ceiling and looked in the area.

Gambit was standing as still as a statue right next to a chair that someone was sitting in. A scientist was laying dead on floor, a small pool of blood around his head. Slowly, the chair turned around and Magneto found himself staring at the devil himself.

"Hello Mr. Lehnserrh." Sinister smirked. "We meet at last."

"Who are you?" Magneto asked, making sure to keep fear out of his voice.

"My name is Nathaniel Essex, at your service." He said while bowing his head.

Magneto then took a quick glance at Gambit.

"Release your hold on Gambit."

Sinister looked over at Gambit for a second before returning his stare to Magneto.

"You gonna make me?"

"If I have to." Magneto responded. "I doubt there anything you could do to me. I'm afraid your telepathy will have no effect."

Remembering he had his helmet on, Magneto got past the other mutants appearance and regained his almost arrogant like confidence. He summoned a large piece of metal and manipulated it so it was sharp at the end, then pushed it forward so it was mere inches from Sinister's head.

"Why did you attack Worthington Industries?"

"I was after something, something that you complicated by killing Dr. Kavita Rao."

"What exactly are you after?"

"A solution." Sinister responded while he picked up a syringe that was filled with a clear liquid.

Magneto watched as Sinister continued to gaze at the syringe before speaking.

"A solution to what?"

"To the out of control overpopulation of this world."

Sinister then slowly got to his feet and Magneto made the piece of metal follow him.

"I'm sure you'd agree that there are far too many people inhabiting this planet. Far too many…inferior people."

"Perhaps." Magneto said, not knowing where the other mutant was going with this.

"The inferiors need to be eliminated. And the elite will rule over those who survive."

Magneto continued to stare at Sinister. The two's thinking weren't exactly so different.

"So what's your plan?"

"I have it right here." Sinister said while looking down at the syringe. "In the palm of my hand. It's not as powerful as I'd hoped, but it will have to do for now."

"What does it do?" Magneto asked as he eyed the syringe.

"It will systematically take out every human…and every mutant who is not worthy."

Magneto then narrowed his eyes.

"What do you mean, not worthy?"

Sinister then cackled.

"I'm sure you know that not every mutant has a power that is useful." Sinister then held up the syringe. "This will not discriminate. If the mutant's gene is powerful enough to survive, then that mutant is worthy. If not…then they're no better than the humans."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Mr. Essex." Magneto said while pushing the metal to the other mutant's chest. "To me, every mutant is worthy."

"Is that so?"

"Yes."

But before he could do anything, Gambit charged up a playing card and threw it at Magneto's feet. It exploded, sending the older man through the air, crashing through a wall. Sinister laughed as Gambit quickly jumped from the window and he began gliding his way to the exit. He looked back at the hole in the wall Magneto had caused.

"It was nice to meet you, Mr. Lehnserrh."

Sinister continued out into the hallway only to see Blob, Toad, and Pyro coming his way.

"Gentleman." He greeted.

Blob moved faster and was about to lunge at him but Sinister quickly focused his telepathy on the large mutant, forcing him to freeze. Then, Blob spun around and grabbed both Pyro and Toad by the throat, lifting them both of their feet and slamming then into the wall.

"Blob!" Toad gasped. "What the hell are you doing?"

Sinister continued his way out of the building only to see Callisto, Psylocke, and Quills waiting on the outside.

"More of you, huh?"

Psylocke made her way towards him but Sinister telekinetically pushed her backwards, causing her to crash into Callisto. Quills attempted to strike him but Sinister caught his wrist and smirked.

"You'll do just fine."

Quills yelled out as Sinister injected him with the contents in the syringe. Once he was finished he released his arm and stepped back. Quills grasped at his arm and glared up at the other mutant.

"You just made a big mistake." Quills said. He then used his powers to spike his whole body up, but before he could take one step his whole body froze. Sinister laughed as a gust of wind blew from Quills as the virus went airborne.

Quills then dropped to the ground, dead.

"It was for a cause greater than yourself." Sinister said while eyeing Quills' body before turning and walking away calmly.

Back in the building, Blob still had a hold on his teammates when finally Pyro formed a fireball and let it explode in Blob's face.

It caused him to let go of Pyro and Toad who dropped to the floor, both gasping for air. Magneto then stumbled his way out of the lab and saw the three of them.

"Where is he?"

"I don't know." Pyro gasped.

Magneto made his way past them and to the outside. He then saw Callisto and Psylocke standing around Quills body. Making his way closer towards them Psylocke turned to him and shook her head.

"He's dead."

However, it wasn't Quills that concerned him. Magneto bent down and picked up the syringe next to his body that Essex was holding in his hand inside the building. It was now empty.

"Oh no."


	36. Healing Touch

XXXXXX

Scott was sitting in a chair out in the hallway of Jean's room, waiting for Moira to be done with all her tests. Xavier was sitting with him with Logan and Ororo standing by his side. None of them were saying anything, they just continued to wait. Wait for the answers they were all dying to know.

Finally, the door opened and Moira stepped out. Scott pushed past the minor injuries he suffered at the lake and got to his feet.

"How is she?"

"Jean has a broken leg. But other than that she will be fine."

"Did she say anything Moira?" Xavier asked. "What does she remember about Alkali Lake?"

"She doesn't remember much. She described it as not being awake, but not being asleep either."

"And what the hell does that mean?" Logan asked.

"Her words, not mine." Moira responded.

"Do you have any idea how she might have survived?" Ororo asked. "I mean, the amount of water that collapsed on her should have obliterated her completely."

"I have a theory that her powers protected her. A cocoon of telekinetic energy forming around her to protect her from the water. It kept her in a state of suspended animation this whole time…something woke her."

"My optic beams." Scott then said.

"What?"

"I fired my beams into the lake. Maybe that's what did it."

"What made you do that?" Ororo asked.

"I kept hearing her, in my head."

"Jean called out to you." Xavier theorized.

While the group kept talking, inside the room Jean was laying in the bed. She could hear everyone talking and she desperately wanted to see them all, especially Scott. She carefully threw her legs over the bed and then winced at the pain in her left leg.

Jean made a small groan of pain as she tried to stand but it was much too hard and painful to do so. She then grasped her leg with both hands and began gently rubbing it. As she continued, Jean didn't know that her eyes were turning orange.

She smiled as slowly, the pain went away. Her stopped rubbing her leg and her eyes went back to their normal color. Jean got up and to her amazement, her leg now felt fine. Meanwhile outside, Moira was still talking to the group.

"I would like to keep her here for another day, maybe two. Just to make sure everything is fine."

No one said a word. The group was now looking at something behind her. Moira turned around to see Jean standing at the doorway of her room, a slight smile on her face.

"Jean." Moira said while going to her side. "You should be in bed. Your leg-"

"My leg's fine." Jean said. "I guess it healed somehow."

"How did it-"

"I don't know."

Jean then looked over at Scott who was now on his feet. Scott then quickly rushed over at her and took her in his arms.

"Are you alright?" Jean asked. "I didn't hurt you did I?"

"I'm fine." Scott said. "It's you I'm worried about."

"Don't worry, Scott. I'm alright. I feel great actually."

As Scott leg go of her, Ororo came over to greet her friend.

"Ororo." Jean smiled.

"Jean." Ororo said as tears came to her eyes as she through her arms around the other woman's neck. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too."

The two let go of each other and Jean then looked to Logan who was standing quietly against the wall. She walked over to him, the two of them just stared at each other for a moment before Logan finally spoke.

"Jean."

"Logan."

"Welcome back."

Jean then closed the distance between the two and gave him a hug. She then turned her attention to the last person there. Xavier had watched the reunion between them all stone faced when Jean bent down to give him a hug.

"What's wrong, Professor?" Jean asked.

"I just can't believe what I'm seeing." Xavier said. "You're really here, alive."

Moira then gave them all rooms to stay in for that night. Scott was getting himself ready for bed as Jean was getting out of the shower. For the first time in a while, Scott believed he was going to get a good night's sleep.

As he was looking at himself in the mirror, Jean came over and rested her chin on his shoulder and stared at his face in the mirror. She really began looking over his beard, signs of what looked to be bags under his eyes and unruly hair.

"You look terrible." She said.

Scott turned to face her.

"It's been hard without you."

Jean then stroked the back of his neck.

"It's alright. I'm here now. I'm really here."

"I know. The Professor and Moira want to know how you survived, but I really don't care how you did it. I'll I care is that your alive."

Jean leaned and Scott stepped in to her, and they take each other fully in their arms again, embracing tenderly. After a few seconds, Jean pulled away and looked at Scott intently.

"There's something I…"

"What is it?"

"I've always wanted to see your eyes."

Scott cocked his head at Jean.

"Jean…you know that I can't."

"I can't explain it, but I feel different." Jean began. "I can control it, I know I can."

She then slowly reached up towards his glasses but Scott took a step back.

"I don't want to hurt you."

"Scott trust me. I want us to see each other with nothing in between."

Jean stepped towards him and reached up to remove his glasses. Scott's eyes were closed as Jean put her palms up to his temples, Jeans eyes were now glowing orange again.

"It's alright, Scott."

Looking down, Scott slowly opens his eyes. For a moment they flash red, then the red light of his optic beams dims down, as it it's being pushed back into his eyes, until it all but disappears revealing a pair of clear, blue eyes.

Scott then looked up and stares in astonishment. He looks around left and right, seeing the world in full color for the first time since he was teenager.

"Wow…"

Scott puts his gaze and full attention back on Jean. He is awed at seeing her in full color for the very first time. Jean smiled.

"I just healed your eyes. You'll never have to wear a visor or sunglasses again."

"How did you do this?"

Jean looked at her hands.

"I really don't know. I've never felt like this before. I feel like I can do anything."

She looked up at him.

"I know this doesn't make sense."

"The Professor and Moira will figure things out in the morning."

Scott then took a step towards her and placed his hands on the sides of her head.

"Until then..."

He then moved closer and kissed her deeply. Jean returned the kiss, and slowly the two of them fell to side, landing softly on the bed.


	37. Proteus

XXXXXX

It was staring to get late on Muir Island, close to midnight as Logan wandered through the building and finally came across the kitchen. Like the others, he had been given a room to stay in but he couldn't sleep. The sight of Jean standing in front of him, after months of believing that she had died…it was something that he couldn't put into words.

And even though Jean had chosen Scott over him, there was still something there between the two. The weird tension that had always been there before.

Logan opened the refrigerator and frowned when he saw there was no beer, only water and juice. He picked up a glass and filled it with water before going over to the table and taking a seat. Just when he raised the glass to his mouth did his old instincts take over him. He got the feeling that someone was close by.

He raised an eyebrow and lifted himself out of his seat slightly only to his surprise, a small blonde haired teenager walked into the room. The boy was awfully pale and had a strange look in his eyes. Logan didn't know how to respond, he had no idea that anyone else was on the island.

"Hey." He finally greeted. "What's your name, kid?"

"Kevin." The boy responded, quietly.

"Do you live here?"

"Who are you?" Kevin asked, ignoring the question.

"Logan."

"Where's my mom?"

"Uhh…"

Logan then wondered if he was Moira's kid.

"Moira MacTaggart. She's your mom?"

"Where is she?" Kevin then got louder. "What did you do to her?"

Logan then got up from his seat and approached him.

"Relax kid, I'll take you to her-"

He then froze in his tracks, his eyes slowly rolled in the back of his head as Kevin focused his powers on a step back, then turned around and began heading to the patio.

Ororo was standing outside, watching the stars of the night sky when she heard the door open and close. She took a quick glance behind her to see that it was Logan coming outside before she returned her gaze to the sky.

"Hey, Logan." She greeted. "I guess I'm not the only one who couldn't sleep tonight."

He didn't respond as he slowly kept approaching her.

"Quite a day wasn't it? It's still hard to believe isn't it? Jean's alive…it's a miracle. I've never been much of a believer, but maybe Kurt's right about-"

She didn't to finish her sentence as Logan grabbed her around the shoulders and roughly spun her around. Ororo gasped in surprise and tried to get out of his grip.

"Logan, what are you-"

Ororo then saw that Logan's eyes were completely white, like what her eyes looked like when she used her powers. When she stopped struggling, Logan picked her up and threw her, causing her to crash through a glass table that was sitting on the patio.

SKINT

Logan's claws then unearthed from his knuckles as he began walking towards the fallen woman and kicked her in the stomach, causing to gasp for air.

Having no choice but to defend herself, Ororo crawled backwards though the glass as she began summoning up a lightning bolt.

The sky flashed and rumbled as thunder went off around the island. Finally, a bolt of lightning came down and struck Logan in the chest, causing him to fly backwards and crash through the glass windows, sending him back into the laboratory.

The noise caused both Scott and Jean to wake up in their room. They both looked at each other in concern.

"What the hell was that?" Scott asked.

Back outside, Ororo trembled as she slowly walked towards Logan's body, feeling both fear and concern as she looked down at him. Suddenly, Logan lunged up to his feet and stabbed Ororo in the stomach as she screamed in terror.

Running out of her room after hearing the commotion, Moira saw her son standing in the hallway and then looked on to see Logan standing over Ororo.

"Oh god, Kevin stop!"

Xavier then appeared in his wheelchair and focused his powers on the child. Kevin's eyes gazed over as he collapsed in his mother's arms. Logan looked like he was about to stab Ororo again but stopped just in time as his eyes went back to normal.

He looked down in shock as he saw Ororo with a wound from his claws. Scott and Jean then ran towards them as Ororo continued to breathe deeply, tears of pain coming down her cheeks.

"What the hell did you do, Logan?" Scott yelled.

"I don't know, I don't remember anything."

"Let's get her on a table." Xavier said.

"No, wait." Jean said as she focused her powers on the wound. She raised her hand to Ororo's stomach and her eyes glowed orange. Ororo gasped as her back arched off the ground and after a second, the pain went away. The wounds had been healed.

Xavier watched the whole thing in amazement and looked at Jean.

"How did you do that?"

Logan and Scott then helped Ororo to her feet.

"Are you alright?" Logan asked. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

"Yes, I feel fine now." Ororo assured, she then looked at Scott's face and did a double take as she noticed his eyes. "Scott, your eyes. What happened to your eyes?"

"I healed them earlier." Jean answered.

Xavier kept staring at Jean but didn't say anything as Moira ran towards them.

"Is everyone alright?"

"What the hell was that? What did your kid do to me?" Logan yelled angrily.

"I'm sorry, I thought the medication I gave him would have kept him calm." Moira answered. "He can possess people, that's his mutation. I'm so sorry, I should have told all of you."

"Yeah, that would have been a good idea." Logan snapped before storming away.

"I'm sorry." Moira apologized again.

"It's alright." Xavier assured. "Everyone's fine, that's the important thing. I'm keeping Kevin stable. Let's just all go back to sleep. We'll clean everything up in the morning."

Once Moira, Scott, and Jean were gone, Xavier and Ororo both went down the same way since their rooms were down the hallway.

"Are you sure you're alright, Ororo?" Xavier asked, but his thoughts were still on Jean.

"Yes, I'm fine." Ororo responded while touching where she had been stabbed. "How did Jean do that? And Scott's eyes? Did you see them?"

"Yes. I have no idea how she can be this powerful."

"Do you think Moira, I mean, she can run more tests can't she?"

Xavier shook his head.

"I don't think even Moira can offer an explanation."


	38. Tension Rising

XXXXXX

The following morning Rogue had prepared herself for a session in the Danger Room but when she walked past Logan's room it was completely empty. Upon heading downstairs she found that there was no one in the Professor's office as well, no students being taught, no classes being conducted. Even the classroom that Ororo taught in, the light was out. No one was inside.

She then walked to the classroom where Kurt taught arts and crafts to the kids and sighed in relief when she saw him.

"Kurt." She began. "Didn't the others come back last night?"

"I'm afraid not." He responded.

"They didn't call, or try to get in touch with us?"

"No. I tried to radio the jet, but I didn't get a response."

When he saw the look on her face, Kurt patted her arm.

"It's okay. I'm sure they're fine."

Rogue then walked out of the room and to her surprise, Bobby and Peter were both standing outside.

"They haven't come back yet?" Bobby asked.

"No." Rogue answered, starting to get worried. "I don't get it, what would be so important that they would be gone for this long?"

"I don't know, I've watched the news, nothing's going on." Bobby responded.

Just then, Kitty came around the corner and quickly made her way over to where the three were standing.

"Hey guys." She greeted. "Have any of you seen Warren around?"

"Oh, you didn't hear?" Peter asked.

"Hear what?"

"His father was killed."

Kitty looked stunned as she stared at the tall boy. The four of them remained quiet for a moment before Bobby spoke up.

"Maybe that's what the Professor went to see. Warren's father did invent the cure, maybe Magneto had something to do with his murder."

"I don't know." Rogue said. "I'm going to try to radio the jet."

She turned to head to the control room but Bobby's voice stopped her.

"Wait, Rogue. I'll go with you."

She nodded.

"Okay. Why don't you two try to find Warren?"

Peter decided to search the lower floors while Kitty headed to the top two floors of the mansion. She checked his room again, nothing. She then decided to head through the door that led up to the roof, and when she opened it, sure enough Warren was standing up here.

He was looking out at the sky, the cold blowing wind was sending his blonde hair in several different directions. He didn't even notice the door open as Kitty walked outside to join him.

"Warren." She began. "We've been looking all over for you. What are you doing up here?"

Warren turned his head to look at her, a solemn look on his face.

"My dad is dead."

Kitty bit her bottom lip.

"I heard. I'm so sorry."

Warren then took a deep breath.

"I don't have any family left. My mom died when I was a kid…now my dad is gone."

Stepping next to him, Kitty took his hand in hers and gently squeezed it.

"The important thing is, you know he loved you."

"Yeah." Warren then laughed bitterly. "That's why he wanted to cure me."

"You said that he told you he made a mistake."

Warren nodded.

"I know. It's just that I've been thinking about what I should do now. My dad always wanted me to take over the company…now that he's gone, I've been thinking if that's what I should do."

"Is that what you want to do?" Kitty asked.

He shrugged.

"Right now, the only thing I want to do…is fly."

Kitty's brows furrowed.

"What?"

Warren didn't respond as he took off his shirt. Kitty then watched in amazement as he extended his wings. She had seen him do this before, but it got her every time.

"Warren!" She exclaimed. "Put your shirt on! You're going to catch a cold."

He ignored her but turned towards her and now had a slight grin on his face.

"Feel like joining me?"

Before she could respond Warren walked around and wrapped his arms around her waist. Kitty smiled at the feeling and before she knew it, her feet were no longer touching the ground.

Warren's wings flapped in the air before he took off, Kitty screamed in delight as Warren spun once in mid air before going up higher.

"Warren!" Kitty laughed. "We're going up too high!"

"Fine." He yelled back. "We'll go down lower."

Warren then went for a nose dive, going down lower, almost like he was going to hit the ground before going back up again. Kitty was both laughing and screaming as he continued and a smile came to his face as well. This was just what he needed to take his mind off everything.

XXXXXX

After exiting the car, Magneto, Pyro, Callisto, and Toad walked towards the urgent care building that Callisto had once been tracking Sinister.

"He's no longer here, Magneto." Callisto said.

Magneto sighed in frustration.

"We're chasing ghosts here." She continued.

"What was he doing here?" The older man asked himself, out loud.

"You think it has something to do with that syringe you were talking about?" Pyro asked before starting to cough.

"I don't know."

"We can't keep going out like this, boss." Toad spoke. "We're wanted fugitives."

"I'm aware, Toad." Magneto snapped. He then looked at Callisto.

"How many mutants are inside?"

"I'm picking up four. The rest are humans."

Eyeing the building for a moment, Magneto then turned to Pyro.

"Set it on fire."

The younger mutant was taken aback.

"What?"

"We don't know what Essex was doing here, I can't risk it."

"But...there's sick people in there."

"And who knows why they could spread. Do it."

Pyro finally did what he was told and unleased a wave of fire at the building. The windows exploded out as the urgent care building was set on fire, people standing around screamed as the Brotherhood went back to their car, Callisto behind the wheel.

As Pyro sat in the backseat, he looked back at the building, seeing the smoke begin to climb up towards the air. Suddenly, he started coughing again.

"Man, quit coughing on me!" Toad complained.

Pyro was about to snap back at him but Magneto spoke up.

"You've had that cough all morning. Are you feeling alright?"

Getting his wind back, the younger man answered.

"Yeah, I'm fine."


	39. Virus Quarantine

XXXXXX

Back at the mutant affairs building in Washington, Hank was sitting at his desk inside his office typing something up when a knock on his open door got his attention.

"Yes, Bishop. Come on in."

Bishop walked in and closed the door behind him.

"What is it?"

"It's nothing of alarm." He assured. "At least…not yet."

Hank then gave him his full attention.

"I've gotten a report from the health department that a large number of people checked themselves in to the emergency room of several hospitals in the New York area last night."

"Really?"

"Yes. Symptoms included, severe headaches, high fever, nausea…things like that."

"Sound like a flu is going around."

"Yes well…some of the people who checked themselves in were mutants."

Hank gave Bishop a look.

"They weren't turned away were they?"

"No…nothing like that. It's just…a bunch of people, both human and mutant alike are going to the hospital on the same night, all having the same symptoms. It just got me thinking."

"I wouldn't worry to much about it, Bishop." Hank responded. "It is flu season, these kind of things happen. Mutants can get sick jut like humans."

Bishop nodded.

"I know…it just gave me a feeling, that's all."

"Well, why don't you put a member of the staff on this? Have him check in on hospitals aroundNew Yorkand give us updates on it."

"Yes, sir."

Once Bishop left his office, Hank finished typing before picking up a video tape in his hand. It was the last one from the Worthington building that hadn't been watched yet.

He sighed before placing it back down. He needed to make time to watch it sometime today, hoping that it would show Worthington's killer so they could finally put an end to all this.

Hank continued watching the security tape inside of his office, hoping that this would be the one that showed Warren Worthington Senior's killer. Just when he lifted up his cup of coffee and brought it to his lips did he see the shape of a man marching down the hallway to the office where Worthington was killed.

Leaning forward to pause the tape, Hank looked at the figure that was being showed and quickly realized it was no man. It wasn't Magneto either. It was a mutant, but it was mutant that looked completely different. Something he had never seen before.

Elsewhere in the building, Bishop was just getting off the phone when a staff member, Paul Harris came running up to him with a notepad in hand.

"Bishop, I've just gotten a phone call." He began. "More people have been admitted into hospitals, this time inPhiladelphia."

"They all have the same symptoms?" Bishop asked.

"Yes."

"Alright. I'll inform McCoy of this. Keep me updated on all of this, the Department of Health might insist on a quarantine."

But just then, Paul froze. As did everyone else who was sitting at their desks or making their way across the building. Bishop's brows furrowed for a second before an explosion went off in the front entrance of the building, the glass of the windows and door shattered as it threw Bishop backwards. Even in his office, Hank was tossed out of his chair.

Gambit then entered the building, a charged up card in his hand. When Bishop got back to his feet, Gambit tossed it at him and it connected with his mid section, the blast sending him flying backwards, crashing against the wall.

Hank quickly opened the door from his office but he was kicked in the chest and he fell back on his desk. Gambit quickly pulled out his staff, charged it up and pointed it at the other mutant's throat. Hank looked up at Gambit who was staring a hole through him with his red on black eyes when the sound of laughter suddenly got his attention.

"Henry McCoy." A voice said. "The Secretary of Mutant Affairs."

Sinister then walked into the office and Hank's eyes widened when he recognized him from the tape.

"You." He gasped. "You're the one who attacked Worthington Industries."

"You got me." Sinister smiled as he made his way to the filing cabinets inside the office. He opened it up and kept searching until he found a file that was entitled, 'Muir Island.'

"Who are you?" Hank asked. "What are you after?"

"Mr. McCoy." Sinister began while spinning around to face him. "I'm sorry that our first meeting had to be like this. I wish I had more time to chat, but I have much more important things to get to."

He then looked towards Gambit.

"Gambit, kill him."

Once he said that, Gambit grabbed Hank by his tie and pulled him up from the desk. He then took the staff and went behind him, using it to strangle the other mutant. Hank gasped for air as Sinister smiled and walked out of the office, heading to the door.

Hank's eyes were getting blurry as he struggled to get out of the grip when suddenly, electricity flashed, and Gambit was stuck with it right in the chest, launching him backwards against the wall.

Sinister spun around when he heard the noise and growled when he saw Bishop back on his feet, his hand glowing red as he crackled with electricity. He then turned around and saw Sinister and sent a blast his way, but Sinister quickly dodged it and ran as fast as he could from the building.

"Hank!" Bishop yelled as he went over to him. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Hank responded while rubbing his throat.

A groan from the other end of the room got his attention and Bishop quickly went over to where Gambit had landed. He dragged him to his feet before slamming him face down on the desk and handcuffing his hands behind his back.

"You're under arrest."

"Wait." Gambit said while looking around. "Where am I?"

"Bishop wait." Hank said while getting up. "I think he was being controlled by that other mutant."

Hank then went over to him as Bishop stood him up.

"What's your name?"

"Remy LeBeau." Gambit answered.

"That mutant you were with. Who is he?"

Gambit sighed.

"He calls himself Sinister."

"What were you doing with him?"

"I don't remember." Gambit answered honestly.

"I don't believe you." Bishop spoke.

"It's the truth."

"I'm gonna get in touch with the F.B.I." Bishop began. "Have them come and question him."

Gambit then looked towards Hank.

"Are people getting sick?"

Hank cocked his head at the younger mutant before calling out to Bishop.

"Wait." Hank said. "Don't do that."

"Why not?"

"I think I'm going to need him. I need to take him somewhere else to be questioned first."

XXXXXX

Standing inside of his office in the hideout of the Brotherhood, Magneto had the television on and was watching the latest broadcast talking about the epidemic that was sweeping through New York and now apparently beginning in Pennsylvania.

"Several dozen people have been admitted into hospitals in Altoona." The reported began. "All having the same symptoms of head aches and high fevers. The health department is currently looking into this and is now encouraging people to avoid public transportation, such as subways and buses."

Magneto continued looking on as another man was interviewed.

"My daughter is sick with a 104 degree fever. It's those damn illegal aliens coming in, spreading there diseases. Why don't why just close the damn border?"

The elder mutant shook his head as he turned off the broadcast. At least mutants weren't being blamed, for now at least. But as much as he hated to admit it, it was a mutant's fault that this was happening

Callisto then walked into the room and addressed him.

"I've picked up Gambit's trace, he is currently in Washington D.C."

"What about Essex?"

"I'm having trouble getting a lock on him."

"We're going to have to find him. He is the one that let this virus out. He'll know how to stop it."

But before he could tell Callisto his plan, Toad came into the room with a frantic look on his face.

"Boss, it's Pyro. He doesn't look well at all."

Magneto's face hardened after being told that and he quickly marched out of his office down the hall to the room Pyro stayed in. From inside the room he could hear the sound of coughing as he slowly opened the door and made his way inside.

"Pyro? Is everything alright?"

Pyro was sitting on the bed, his head turned away from him, towards the wall.

"I'm fine." He gasped.

He then started coughing again as Magneto came towards him.

"You don't sound fine."

Upon getting closer to him, Pyro turned his head and Magneto saw that the younger mutant was pale and sweating badly.

When he saw his state, Magneto closed his eyes and immediately assumed the worst.

"You think I have the virus?" Pyro asked.

"We need to get you to a hospital."

Pyro laughed bitterly.

"What hospital is going to take me in?"

"We need to take you somewhere to get help."


	40. Good News, Bad News

XXXXXX

The X-jet made it's way through the sky, slicing through the clouds as Scott and Jean sat up in the pilots seats, both not saying a word just enjoying each other's company. Logan was sitting in a seat up in front while Ororo was sitting in one of the back seats with the Professor. She took a quick glance at the older man before finally deciding to speak.

"Do you think we're doing the right thing?" She asked. "Leaving Muir Island? Going home so soon?"

"There's no reason to say any longer." Xavier responded. "Jean is fine, physically. As far as the…advancement in her abilities, there's nothing Moira can do to explain it. No test she can run will give us the answers."

"So what could have caused it? What do you think?"

Xavier looked at Ororo.

"I have a theory."

However, he could say nothing more as Scott then spoke up.

"Alright everyone, we're getting ready to land."

Just as the jet flu over the basketball court of the mansion, Rogue just happened to be at her window and gasped when she saw it. She quickly ran out of her room and down the stairs to the media room where Bobby, Peter, Kitty, and Warren were all watching television.

"Guys, they're back."

After she said that, the four of them got up to their feet and followed her down the hall to the mansion sub-complex. When they reached the control room, Rogue looked inside and saw Kurt sitting there by the radio.

"Kurt, they're back."

Kurt got up and joined them. After the jet settled in the underground bunker, Logan was the first to come out and saw the waiting group.

"Logan." Rogue greeted as she went over to hug him.

"Whoa, what's with everyone?" Logan asked.

"Where have you guys been? It's been two days."

Logan then realized that none of them at even bothered to get in touch with the rest of the group during their whole time on the island. Ororo then pushed Xavier's wheelchair down the ramp and joined Logan and the kids.

"Ororo." Kurt greeted while going over to her side. "We've been so worried."

"Oh my god." Ororo then realized. "I'm so sorry, we completely forgot to tell you all where we were."

"So what happened?" Peter asked. "Why'd you guys rush out of here so fast?"

Ororo smiled.

"We've got a bit of surprise for you."

After she said that, the two remaining people came down the ramp. Scott and Jean walked hand in hand off the jet and came to stop in front of the group. Bobby and Rogue both looked like they were staring at a ghost, they were there that day at Alkali Lake when Jean saved them all.

"Ms. Grey." Bobby gasped.

"You're alive." Rogue finished.

"I am." Jean smiled.

"How?" Bobby asked.

"It doesn't matter how." Scott responded, getting tired of the question. "All the matters is that she is."

Warren however was confused.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Jean Grey, I was, or I am a part of the team. You must be new."

"I am." Warren said. "My name is Warren Worthington. Pleasure to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you to." Jean then looked around at them all. "I look forward to catching up with you all, I know I must have missed a lot. Life here is never quiet."

"You can say that again." Peter said.

"Why don't we all have dinner tonight together?" Xavier suggested. "It will give Jean a chance to be with everyone."

"Sound's great." Scott said. "Jean, why don't we go upstairs?"

Scott didn't want to break up the reunion so fast, but he didn't want to crowd Jean. It was just then did Kitty do a double take as she stared at her teacher's face.

"Professor Summers, you're eyes!" She gasped. "You're eyes are fixed!"

Bobby, Rogue, and Peter then all realized it too.

"Whoa." Bobby said. "How did that happen?"

Scott smiled as he looked at Jean.

"We'll tell you everything, tonight. I promise."

Scott and Jean then walked away. The kids then went back too, talking amongst themselves over Jean's return. However, it was Kurt that looked the most shocked out of them all.

"Kurt?" Ororo asked. "Are you okay?"

"How could she come back?" He asked. "I was there when she died."

"No…she never died-"

"The only person to ever come back from the dead was the son of god."

Kurt then looked at Ororo.

"So what does that make her?"

But Ororo just shook her head and smiled.

"No, Kurt. She's still…normal. She never died, she was just…asleep I guess."

But it was clear that Kurt wasn't listening. Meanwhile, Logan was just about to head up the stairs when a knocking at the front door got his attention. He went over and opened it up, and to his surprise, Hank was standing there with another man by his side.

"Hank?" Logan said. "What are you doing here?"

Hank stepped inside, pulling Gambit in with him.

"I'm sorry for not giving you a head's up, but this is urgent."

"What's the problem?" Logan then looked towards Gambit. "Who's he?"

"Turn on the news."

The Professor, Logan, Ororo, Kurt, Hank, and Gambit were all in the professor's office, watching the television. It was a broadcast talking about the virus.

"Several patients were now admitted to a hospital in New Jersey with similar symptoms of the virus." A reporter began. "Since the outbreak is thought to have occurred in New York, the Center for Disease Control is planning to close most of New York's private and public facilities in hopes of containing the virus."

Hank then muted the screen and looked towards Xavier.

"It's now spread to New Jersey. It's becoming a pandemic."

"So much can happen in just two days." Logan said while shaking his head.

"And that's the scary thing. It's only been two days, imagine what it could be like in a week…two weeks."

"We need to find out more about this virus." Xavier said.

"That's why I brought him." Hank said while looking at Gambit. "He knows the mutant who released it."

"Mutant?"

"Yes, he had him under his control. Start talking, Remy."

Remy took a deep breath.

"The guy called himself Sinister. The virus he came up with his designed to effect humans and certain mutants."

"Wait." Logan said. "Mutant's as well?"

"Yes." Hank confirmed. "Mutants have been checking into hospitals as well."

"He isn't like Magneto." Remy continued. "Sinister believes that only the strongest mutants should survive, and rule over the one's who don't perish from the virus. He calls mutant's like him, "the elite."

"How do we cure it?"

"I don't know." Remy shrugged. "But I do know it's going to start killing people soon. The virus gives you a fever…it eventually burns you out."

"I need to get in touch with the hospitals." Hank said while getting up. "Find out just what we're dealing with a begin working on a cure."


	41. A Spreading Sickness

XXXXXX

Queens Hospital Center was being overrun with people checking into the emergency room, all complaining of the same symptoms. There were no more beds available and ambulances that were coming here had to be re-directed somewhere else.

On the third floor inside one of the patient bedrooms, a mutant who had been checked in yesterday was running a fever that was now out of control. He now had a headache and was screaming in pain as nurses ran into with morphine, trying to do everything in their power to treat him.

"We should just dump him." Dr. White said to one of his colleagues, Dr. Burton but he just gave him a look of disbelief in return.

"We can't do that, he's a sick man."

"You mean he's a sick mutant."

"Regardless he needs help. And can you imagine the bad press we would get if we threw out a sick mutant. The department of mutant affairs would be all over us."

The mutant then started screaming louder causing both men to jump. The mutant sat up gasping for air and suddenly his hands began glowing blue. The nurses jumped back as the glow kept getting bigger and bigger and finally and unintentionally, the mutant set off a sonic boom that caused the entire wing of the hospital to explode, killing everyone instantly.

Back in Westchester, both Jean and Scott were downstairs in the Professor's office watching a broadcast talking about the virus, getting caught up to what was going on.

"A mutant released this?" Scott questioned.

"That's what Remy told us." Xavier answered.

"Maybe I should read his thoughts." Jean suggested. "Maybe he knows more than he's telling us."

"I don't think that will be necessary, Jean. Mr. LeBeau has been more than cooperative since Henry brought him here."

Hank then walked into the room.

"Professor, I've just gotten word that twenty two people have now died from this virus. It looks like the victim doesn't have much time when they are infected."

While this was going on in the office, outside the mansion a car had pulled up. It was Magneto, and he was guiding Pyro up to the door.

"Don't you think we should knock?" Pyro suggested.

"I think we're far past proper addicate."

Magneto threw open the door, and it was just his luck that Logan happened to be passing by just then. He froze when he saw the arch enemy of the team just standing there like it was nothing and quickly unearthed his claws from his knuckles.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

He tried to approach him but was quickly thrown back against the wall by Magneto's powers.

"You really never learn, do you?" Magneto asked while shaking his head. He then looked over and saw Jones, a younger student watching the whole exchange. "You, go get the Professor."

The boy nodded and quickly ran to the Professor's office.

"I think I should get in touch with Moira." Hank said as the others continued their conversation. "Maybe she could help us with coming up with a cure."

"That's sounds like a good idea." Xavier responded before Jones came running in.

"Professor, there's someone here to see you."

Xavier looked at the others.

"I'll be right back."

Xavier wheeled himself out and followed Jones to the foyer of the mansion. To his shock, it was his old friend, Erik Lehnserrh standing there, and Logan pinned up against the wall.

"Erik? What are you doing here?"

"I need help, Charles. You know about the virus don't you?"

"Of course."

"I think Pyro has it."

Pyro then walked further in and Xavier casted a glimpse at his former student. He was very pale and sweat was dripping down his face. He definitely looked sick.

"How did it happen?"

"He was there with me the night the virus went airborne."

"You were there as well?"

Magneto nodded and Xavier sighed.

"Please Charles. I have no where else to take him."

"Alright. You remember where the infirmary is?"

Magneto scoffed.

"Alright. Take him there. I'll send Hank to examine the both of you."

Magneto then released his hold on Logan before taking a hold of Pyro's arm and guiding him to the infirmary. Logan glared at his back before following the Professor back to his office.

"Who was that?" Scott asked as Xavier re-entered the room, but Logan followed him in and answered for him.

"It was Magneto. He's here."

Scott and Jean both looked at each other before looking at the Professor.

"Why is Magneto here?"

"It's John." Xavier answered. "Magneto brought him here. He may have the virus."

"And he's going to get the rest of us sick." Logan argued.

"I'd hate to agree with Logan, but he's right." Scott said. "You need to get rid of him."

"Wait, this is good." Hank said. "Well…not good, but if he does have the virus then I can examine him, take a blood test. Find out just what we're up against, and then follow up by creating a cure."

Scott sighed and then nodded his head.

"Fine. John can stay but I want Magneto gone."

"I can't make him leave, Scott. He's wearing his helmet."

"Then I'll make him."

"No Scott. Erik could have the virus as well."

"Good." Scott said, not caring if his words hurt the other man. "I hope he does. Hopefully it will do us a favor."

Xavier now had a tense look on his face as he looked up at Scott.

"This is still my house, Scott. I'm not turning Erik away."

"You're making a big mistake, Professor."

"I think you should be kinder to Erik, Scott."

"Why is that?"

"Because I think he is the reason Jean is still alive."

Scott looked at Jean who was now staring at the Professor in confusion.

"What do you mean by that?" She asked.

"I think Erik's machine from Liberty Island is what caused your mutation to become so strong."

"I thought you said it didn't affect mutants."

"I said it appeared to have no effect on mutants, from what I saw from Senator Kelly's memories." Xavier answered.

"If that's true, then how come I wasn't affected?" Scott asked. "Or Logan, or Ororo?"

"Because Jean was different from the rest of you. All of your mutations were fully developed already, Jean was still learning how to develop hers at the time."

There was a silence in the room for a minute before Hank spoke up.

"We need to go over this another time. I need to get to work."

After Pyro got settled in, Hank was in the room with him while wearing a face mask and gloves as he took a sample of his blood. He also used fluids and kept the air conditioning down low in order to combat his fever.

Knowing that the kids needed to be brought up to speed, Ororo and Kurt brought them down to the student lounge to talk.

"You guys need to know that Magneto is here." Ororo began, immediately getting looks of shock from them all. "So don't try anything if you see him."

"Why is he here?" Rogue asked.

"There is a virus going around that is affecting mutants and humans. Apparently John is sick."

The mention of John's name caused Bobby and Rogue to look at each other and Bobby's expression to harden.

"Is he okay?" Rogue asked.

"From what I heard, he's fine for now. But Magneto couldn't take him to a regular hospital. We were the alternative."

They were all quiet for a moment before Bobby spoke.

"We may be the alternative, Ororo. But I don't want anything to do with him."

The X-Kids all watched as Bobby stormed away, heading for the kitchen. However, he didn't know that Logan was standing in the hallway, hearing everything that was said and had watched Bobby's reaction.


	42. Questions and Answers

XXXXXX

Pyro was laying in the infirmary with his eyes closed, trying to sleep. It was funny being here, he had never been to the infirmary once during the whole time he had lived here as a student, now he was here as a member of the Brotherhood. Just as he shifted in the bed, trying to get comfortable, something touched his hand.

He opened his eyes and looked over to see Rogue sitting in a chair next to the bed. She had her gloves on, as usual and was wearing one of those blue face masks Hank was wearing when he took a sample of his blood.

"You look ridiculous." He remarked.

"It's nice to see you too." Rogue smiled, her response slightly muffled.

"What do you want?"

"I was just worried about you. They said you were sick."

"Yeah, I feel pretty horrible."

"You're gonna be okay."

Pyro sighed, wishing he could believe that.

"I'm surprised the Professor let me in here."

"He wouldn't turn you away. Especially after what you did last time…letting Jimmy go."

"Ah, Leech. Is he still around?"

"No. He went back to live with his father."

"Good. I don't have to worry about Magneto running into him."

There was a silence between the two for the next few moments. Rogue shifted in her seat as something crossed her mind. It was something she had been wanting to ask him ever since he did it.

"John-"

"My name is Pyro."

"You'll always be John to me."

Pyro rolled his eyes.

"Whatever."

John…do you remember that day in the park? After you blew up the clinic?" She asked.

"Somewhat."

"Why did you kiss me."

The pyromaniac couldn't help but smirk after Rogue asked that.

"That was a little over two months ago and it's still on your mind?"

"You really took me by suprise." Rogue responded. "That was the last thing I expected you to do."

Shrugging, Pyro responded;

"I don't know why. I guess I just wanted to."

"So you kissed me because you wanted to?"

"Basically."

Silence overcame the two again before Pyro took a deep breath.

"If I'd known I was gonna die two months later I would have enjoyed it a lot more."

Rogue looked at him.

"You're not gonna die."

"Don't even try to give me that 'everything's gonna be okay shit'." He snapped.

"Dr. McCoy is working on a cure."

Pyro didn't respond, he just kept staring at the ceiling.

"I thought this virus only affected weak mutants. How am I a weak mutant?"

"You're not weak." Rogue said while standing up. "And you're not going to die."

Rogue walked out of the infirmary and just next door in the mansion's lab, Hank was on the phone discussing the situation with Moira.

"Do you see what's happening Moira?" Hank asked.

"Yes, I'm watching the news." Moira responded. "It looks like an outbreak."

"Is there anything you can see from Mr. Allerdyce's blood test?"

Moira picked up the test result that Hank had faxed over to her.

"It's looks as though the virus is attacking his mutant gene. As far as the humans who are being affected, I assume it works like any other virus."

"We need to develop a cure, and quick."

"I'll try my best to help, Henry."

Once Hank hung up the phone he turned around and to his surprise Rogue was standing there, holding something in her hand.

"Rogue, what are you doing in here?"

"Dr. McCoy, is there anything you can do with this?"

She held out her hand and Hank looked at the item in shock. It was the flask from Worthington Industries, the sample of the cure he stole.

"How did you get this?" He asked while taking it from her.

"I found it in the war room months ago. I've been hanging on to it ever since."

"This is good. I'll run some tests on it. Maybe this can come in handy, trying to create some kind of new cure."

As Hank got to work, Rogue walked out of the lab but not before turning around once last time and giving the flask which contained the mutant cure, the last sample of the cure one more glance. As Rogue was leaving the area, back in the kitchen Bobby was sitting at the table, drinking a beer he had found in the fridge when suddenly Logan walked in and eyed him when he saw him drinking one of his beers.

"You do know that's mine, don't you?"

"Yeah, what are you going to do?" Bobby asked while bringing the bottle up to his lips. "Gut me?"

"Na, I'll let it slide this once." Logan responded while taking a seat across from him. Bobby took another sip of the beer before grimacing in disgust and pushing it away.

"How can you drink this, it's disgusting."

Logan shook his head then got up and opened up the cupboard, pulling out a Dr. Pepper and handing it to Bobby.

"Why don't you stick to sodapop?"

Taking the beer, Logan wiped off the top with his shirt before taking a sip. Bobby iced over the soda before opening it up and began drinking.

"So, I saw that your buddy is here." Logan began.

"He's not my buddy. Not anymore."

Logan nodded as he continued looking at the younger man.

"He betrayed us and joined Magneto." Bobby stated, bitterly. "He fought against us, and now that he's in trouble he comes back, expecting us to help him."

"So you're not going to go visit him?"

"Why should I?"

"Rogue is down there now."

Bobby made a noise but didn't respond.

"And, I saw on the news that people are starting to die from this thing."

Bobby looked to the side, trying to ignore what Logan had said, trying not to think about the whole situation.

"Dr. McCoy is going to come up with something."

"Maybe or maybe not." Logan responded. "Do you really want that hanging over your head? Your friend dying before you could ever bury the hatchet with him?"

Bobby sighed as Logan then got up to his feet.

"Even if he's cured, he's just going to leave again." Bobby said. "So what's the point?"

"Look, I can't tell you what to do. But if it were me...I'd try to make peace with him. Just in case."

He then turned around to leave but Bobby's voice stopped him.

"Hey."

Logan looked back at him.

"How come all of our conversations end up in here?" Bobby asked.

"Beat's me." Logan shrugged.


	43. Brothers In Arms

XXXXXX

The sky was slowly starting to darken as evening came. It was quiet inside the mansion as Rogue was now sitting in the student lounge along with Peter, Kitty, and Warren and they were talking among themselves about the virus as well as the arrival of Magneto and Pyro.

"They say on the news that this virus is pretty bad." Peter began. "How is John? Is he doing okay?"

"Yeah, he seems fine." Rogue responded. "For now."

"I never met him." Warren remarked. "Is he a friend of yours?"

Rogue nodded.

"What about Bobby?" Kitty asked. "He's known him the longest. Is he gonna visit John?"

"I don't know. I hope so."

Before any of them could say another word, the sound of footsteps could be heard as someone was coming their way. Slowly, Magneto walked by the entrance of the room, looking over and peering at them all as he continued on his way. The group was quiet until he was gone.

"That guy gives me the creeps." Warren finally said when he was sure the older mutant couldn't hear him.

"You and me both." Kitty agreed.

Continuing his way to the infirmary, Magneto walked on until he ran into someone who just walked down the stairs. The two of them both looked shocked as the leader of the Brotherhood was staring into Gambit's red on black eyes.

"Gambit. I see that you managed to get away."

"Magneto? What are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same thing."

"That McCoy guy brought me here. Sinister had me attack him and-"

"Never mind." Magneto snapped. "Where is Essex now?"

"I have no idea."

Magneto then grabbed Gambit by his shirt collar and pushed him up against the wall. Gambit was taken off guard by the older mans strength and struggled in his grasp.

"Don't lie to me!"

"I'm not lying! What makes you think I'd cover for him?"

He gave Gambit once last look before letting go of him and turning away, continuing to his original destination. While back in the infirmary, Pyro moved about in his bed, then started to cough. He knew he had a fever and it was now really starting to affect him. He took another deep breath before a familiar voice got his attention.

"Are you alright?"

Pyro slowly opened his eyes to see Bobby standing by the bed. The two of them watched each other with unblinking eyes for a moment before Bobby took a seat right where Rogue had been.

"Do you need anything?"

"Did she put you up to this?" Pyro asked.

"Who?"

"Rogue."

Bobby shook his head.

"No. We broke up a few days ago."

Pyro couldn't help but smirk and Bobby snorted.

"I'm glad I could bring a smile to your face."

"Yeah, well. I'm surprised you two lasted as long as you did."

"Why's that?"

"You were horrible with girls, Bobby. You and I both know that."

"Yeah? I didn't exactly see girls hanging off your arms when you were here."

"I have standards." Pyro sighed.

An awkward silence fell on the two boys and Pyro fidgeted as he hated silences. He went into his pants pocket and pulled out his lighter and began flipping it open and closed as Bobby watched the floor before finally starting to speak again.

"So...how's life in the Brotherhood?"

"Different." Pyro simply stated. "How's life in the X-Men?"

"Hard." Bobby answered honestly. "It's been hard."

Pyro flicked his lighter on.

"Did you miss me?"

Bobby looked up and narrowed his eyes as he looked from Pyro to the lit lighter he held his hand.

"I missed who you were."

"I've always been this way." Pyro responded while shutting the lighter. "You know that. You know that I never fit in with this place."

"You never gave it a chance." Bobby said.

"Whatever, Bobby." Pyro said while rolling his eyes. "Think what you want."

"And still blaming everyone else."

"Just leave. Why did you even come down here?"

Sighing, Bobby got to his feet and looked down at his one time best friend.

"I just wanted to tell you…we've been through a lot together. We've been roommates, we've been friends…we've fought each other. Despite everything, you're like a brother to me."

Opening up his eyes again, Pyro looked over at Bobby.

"Hell, you've been a better brother than Ronny." Bobby admitted.

The other boy couldn't help but smirk a little.

"That sounds fine to me. I've never had a brother…and now I do."

The two of them then grinned before Pyro started coughing. Bobby sat back down and placed his hand on his friend's forehead.

"You're burning up."

"I know." Pyro said as he took a deep breath. "I feel it."

Thinking quickly, Bobby iced over his hand and put it on Pyro's forehead.

"That's better."

The two of them continued talking but unbeknownst to them, Magneto was standing behind the door, looking at them through the glass window and had watched the whole exchange. He finally turned away and headed for the lab where Hank was back on the phone with Moira.

"This virus is attacking the general transcription and replication of all cells." Hank said as he looked at a computer screen. "In a condition akin to a fast replicating cancer."

"From my further examining these test results, this virus is inserting introns into the transcription codings of Mr. Allerdyce's RNA." Moira responded. "Eventually, the process is going to render his body incapable of creating healthy cells."

"So if we eliminate the introns from John's RNA, it should cure him of the virus."

"Theoretically, yes."

"What about humans?"

"I'm not sure. If we had a sample of blood from a sick human it would be much easier."

"I know, Moira." Hank sighed. "But this is all we have."

Suddenly, Hank heard a gasp from the other line and the phone went dead.

"Moira?"

Magneto's walked further into the room as Hank dialed the number again. He was relieved when someone answered.

"Moira, what happened?"

"Moira, can't come to the phone right now." Said a deep male voice.

"Oh please, it's a matter of life and death."

The man chuckled.

"Not anymore it isn't."

Hank's mouth then opened as he recognized the voice.

"You."

Sinister smirked.

"Goodbye, Dr. McCoy."

Back on Muir Island, Sinister hung up the phone and turned his attention back to Moira who was crawling on the floor.

"You're a brilliant woman, Ms. MacTaggert." He began. "But I'm afraid I can't let you interfere with my plans."

Once Moira looked up, her eyes locked with Sinister and he grinned.

"Choke yourself."


	44. Curing the Disease

XXXXXX

Hank slowly hung up the phone and looked over to Magneto was staring at him with a harden expression. He took a deep breath and altered the older mutant to what had just happened.

"I guess I'm on my own now. Moria was just attacked by that mutant. She's probably been killed."

Magneto shook his head.

"Damn him."

"Erik, you said you were there the night the virus went airborne. Do you remember anything at all? Anything specific? It's important."

"Essex injected one of my men with the virus. Afterwards, as soon as he used his powers he dropped dead. That's all I know."

Hank nodded.

"Thank you."

"You can cure it, can't you?" Magneto asked. "I don't want to see another dead mutant because of this."

"I'm trying." Hank responded before going back to work. Magneto sighed before heading out. He went back to the infirmary door and once again looked through the door's window, staring at Pyro who was dying from this virus.

Meanwhile, in once of the bedrooms on the third floor Jean was sitting on the bed with the television on, watching the latest news on the virus.

"According to reports, ten more people have died from this illness." A female reporter began. "Mayor Bloomberg has sighed a memo, ordering a quarentine of several major facilites in the New York City area."

Scott then came out of the bathroom and saw what Jean was watching. He walked over to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Scott." She began. "This virus is going to kill so many more people. Humans, mutants…we need to do something."

"I know. Hank is trying to come up with a cure. It's hard, but all we can do it wait."

"I don't think that's all we can do." Jean responded while getting to her feet and looking Scott in the eyes.

"What do you mean?"

"Scott…the way my powers are now. If I focus hard enough, I can wipe this virus out."

"Wait, Jean-"

"I really think I can."

"No, Jean. It's not a good idea."

"Why isn't it?"

"Because we still don't know the extent of what you can do. Let's say you tried it and it didn't work, or even if it did work we don't know what it could do to you."

"I can't just stand here and do nothing."

Scott shook his head and placed his hands on either side of Jean's head.

"I thought I lost you."

"Scott-"

"You can't put yourself in harms way again…please. You need to develop your mutation slowly and safely, just like the Professor wanted you to."

Jean sighed.

"Alright."

"Promise me you won't try it."

Looking at him, Jean nodded.

"I promise."

Jean then turned and left the room. She headed downstairs and kept walking until she was heading to the direction of the infirmary. Once she got there, she looked in and saw Pyro laying on one of the beds, ghostly pale. Bobby was gone now, and sitting at the chair by the bed was Magneto.

She saw that Magneto's mouth was moving, what he was saying to the younger mutant couldn't be heard and Jean refrained from using her abilities to listen in, despite her curiousity.

Magneto certainly looked worried and Pyro didn't look well at all. Jean closed her eyes and sighed for a moment before looking back up, looking at Pyro. She then focused her powers on him...and suddenly her eyes began to glow orange.

XXXXXX

It was now going on eleven o'clock at night as Xavier sat in his office, watching the television on mute. A quarentine was going on in several areas in New York, men in specially designed suits were being dropped in.

A bar on the screen kept rolling, reporting the death toll. Xavier closed his eyes when it read that fifty two more people had now died from the virus.

Just then, the door opened and Hank walked in causing the Professor to look up at him hoping for the best.

"I need to see everyone." Hank stated.

"Have you found a cure, Henry?" Xavier asked.

Hank looked down at the floor.

"I'd rather address this only once."

After a few minutes, everyone had gathered in the Professor's office. Magneto, Scott, Jean, Logan, Ororo, Kurt, Bobby, Rogue, Kitty, Peter,Warren, and even Gambit were all standing in the room before Hank, waiting to hear what he had to say.

"Ladies and gentleman." He began.

"Skip the small talk." Logan interrupted.

"Can you cure this, Hank?" Ororo then asked.

Hank took a deep breath and nodded.

"Yes."

"Alright, so what's with the big meeting?" Scott responded.

"You should get in touch with government officials." Xavier then spoke. "Tell them you found a cure-"

"Wait. When coming up with it, I used a lot of the data from a sample of the mutant cure that I kept for myself." Hank began while taking a brief glance at Rogue.

"And?" Logan asked.

"I re-examined Pyro's blood, the way the virus is attacking his mutant gene. I forced to change some things in order to not only cure humans and mutants, but to make sure mutants don't loose their powers in the process."

Hank then looked at Magneto.

"From what Erik told me about the night the virus was released, I hypothesized that the virus was released when the host it had been injected into used his powers for the first time, making it go airborne. It also killed the host instantly."

Taking a deep breath, Hank continued.

"This cure I developed works the same way. A host must be injected with it, then use their powers. It will release the cure into the air, and wipe out the virus when it goes airborne. But unfortunately, much like with the virus…the host will die."

The group all looked at Hank in silence before looking amongst each other. They all took in the information…the cure that he had come up with needed a host in order to work, much like the virus.

But it wasn't only that, was he without words asking one of them to step up? To be that host…to sacrifice them self in order to save the lives of all those infected and about to die?

"Is there any other way, Henry?" Xavier asked.

"If I had more time-"

"We don't have more time." Magneto snapped.

"I'm aware. We don't have more time and I'm not Moira MacTaggert. To cure this virus, right now, at this moment, this is the only solution."

They were all quiet again for a minute before suddenly, Logan stepped out from the group. He looked at Hank and nodded.

"I'll take it."


	45. One Last Goodbye

XXXXXX

Everyone looked at Logan in surprise after he said that. Rogue's eyes were widened and she shook her head as she came closer to him.

"Logan, no."

"It's okay, kid."

"It's not okay! You'll die!"

"You will Logan." Hank confirmed. "Whoever takes this cure will die."

"I'll take it." Logan said again before taking a deep breath. "I kept wondering, thinking about what my purpose was, what I'm supposed to do. Maybe this is why I'm still here at this place. To stop this virus from affecting anyone else."

Rogue continued to shake her head as tears slowly began to fill her eyes.

"Logan…please. Don't do this."

"Logan…I don't know about this." Ororo then spoke.

"Yeah." Bobby agreed. "Just think about this for a minute."

However, Logan just smiled.

"It's okay…I'll do it. I'm not afraid."

Logan then began to approach Hank but something pulled him back, something magnetic. He then looked over to see Magneto was looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"No, Logan." Magneto stated. "You won't be the one who takes it. I will."

Xavier then turned his head to look at his old friend in shock after he said that.

"Erik?"

"There's no time to argue, and no point. Not if we want to cure this virus. Henry, get it ready."

"Wait a minute." Xavier began.

Magneto then looked down at the floor and took a deep breath.

"Henry, can we do this in here?"

"Yes…I suppose." Hank responded, still surprised that Magneto had offered to be the one to take the cure.

"Good, go get it. Everyone else, leave us."

The rest of the group all looked to the Professor and he nodded.

"Yes. Everyone, please give us a moment."

The all began exiting out, Scott being the last one, giving Magneto one last look before closing the door behind him. The Professor then looked up at Magneto.

"Erik. You can't be serious about this."

"I am."

"Why?"

"I'm not going to let one more mutant die from this, Charles."

"You do know that it's not only certain mutants being affected by this, Erik. It's humans as well."

"I'm aware." Magneto responded. "But it's not worth it, not if mutants are going to die from this as well. And it's not only for them…it's for me."

Magneto then sighed as he slowly walked over to the couch and sat down, Xavier watching him the whole way. He remained quiet for a moment, looking at the metal chess board on the desk. From the look at the pieces scattered on the board, it looked as though a game had been played not to long ago, left unfinished.

"I'm seventy years old now, Charles." He began. "I know I can't do this much longer. I know I'm going to die someday…and if I had a choice of how to go, I want my death to have some meaning. I want to know that I did something that helped my people in the end."

Xavier just kept looking at his friend, he was silent, not knowing how to respond. Suddenly, a knock on the door came and Hank opened the door, and IV, needle and syringe in hand.

"Are we ready, gentleman?"

"I'm ready." Magneto said.

"I uh." Xavier stammered. He couldn't believe this, he couldn't believe that this was going to be the last conversation with Erik.

"After you injected me, leave us again." Magneto said.

Hank nodded and then went to work. He attached the IV to the older mutant's arm then lifted up the syringe which contained the cure for the virus.

"There's no going back from this." Hank began. "Are you sure that you want to do this?"

"Do it."

Hank nodded and injected the cure into the IV. He and Xavier both watched as the fluid kept going until it all reached Magneto's arm and entered his system. Once it was all gone, Hank backed away.

"You have to use your powers for it to be released into the air. After that…"

"I understand."

"Thank you, Erik." Hank said, not believing that he actually just spoke those words.

He then turned away and exited the office, leaving both men to themselves.

"I thought you told me Jean had died at Alkali Lake." Magneto began.

"She did, or least I thought she did."

Magneto smirked.

"You were right, Charles. She is special."

"I'm just worried about her right now."

"You sound just like her parents, so many years ago."

They were quiet again for a few moments before Magneto spoke again.

"They kind of remind me of us."

Xavier's brows furrowed.

"Who?"

"Pyro and that other boy."

"Bobby Drake?"

"Yes. Good friends who have different ideologies. I hope that this whole conflict going on doesn't do to them what happened to us."

"Erik…" Xavier began, he didn't want to have one of these conversations, the conversations they use to have before Erik left. "I don't want to do this, especially now."

"I never wanted to be your enemy, Charles."

"I know."

Xavier then cleared his throat, wanting to change the subject.

"This is very brave thing you're doing."

Magneto nodded.

"Can I ask you to do one thing?"

"Anything."

"Do what you set out to do. Bring peace to humans and mutants, it's what you wanted to see happen isn't it?"

"I thought you didn't believe that peace could happen."

Smiling, Magneto then looked from Charles to the chessboard.

"Charles?"

"Yes?"

"Checkmate."

Magneto then lifted up his finger and magnetically moved a chess piece in front of the king so it could not escape. And with that, he had used his powers and his back arched up off the couch as the cure for the virus left his body and went airborne.

His body slumped back down and his eyes closed, and with that…Erik Lehnserrh died.

Xavier swallowed a knot in his throat as he looked at his friend's body, still and unmoving. Slowly he moved his wheelchair over so that he was right in front of him, looking at his face, seeing how at peace Erik now looked.

A tear slowly rolled down his left check as he reached out and gently squeezed his old friend's hand.

"Goodbye, Erik."

After a minute, he backed his wheelchair away, still looking at Erik's face. He brushed away the tear and smiled a little, hoping that his old friend had finally found peace.


	46. Phoenix Born from Ashes

XXXXXX

"How are you feeling, John?" Jean asked as she checked him over. He didn't seem to have any of the symptoms of the virus anymore. She hoped that Henry's cure had worked like he said he would.

"I feel better." Pyro responded as he got to his feet.

"Alright. I'll tell Henry."

Jean then walked out of the infirmary, passing Bobby and Rogue along the way who were standing in the doorway. Pyro then cleared his throat and looked uncomfortable.

"Magneto…he's really dead?"

"Yeah." Bobby responded. "Hank said that whoever took the cure for the virus would die…Magneto stepped up to take it. I guess he didn't want to see anyone else die from this."

"He didn't want to see anymore _mutants_, die from this." Pyro responded.

Bobby sighed as he looked over at Rogue.

"John-"

"I don't know what I'm going to do now." He confessed, but then Rogue spoke up.

"John…stay here."

Pyro looked at her and the three of them were all silent for a moment before Rogue turned away and headed down the hall, to the lab where Hank was inside talking on the phone to Bishop who was still in Washington D.C.

"It seems as though this virus is gone, Henry." Bishop spoke. "It's strange, it's like everyone who was infected was cured overnight. I believe all the quarentines are going to be called off by the weekend, just to be absolutley sure."

"That's good, Bishop." Hank responded. "I should be back in Washington in a couple of hours. Even if this virus is cured, the mutant who released it is still out there and we have to work on apprehending him."

Hank then hung up the phone and turned around to see Rogue standing there.

"I've been watching the news." Rogue began. "It looks like it worked."

"Good, now we have to work on finding the mutant who released it."

Hank then looked like he was getting ready to leave but Rogue quickly spoke up.

"Henry...the sample of the mutant cure I gave you. You wouldn't happen to still have it would you?"

"Oh."

Hank then took the flask out of his jacket's pocket and held it in his hand.

"Thank you for giving this to me, Rogue. I really helped in coming up with a new cure."

He then gave it one last look before handing it back to Rogue.

"It's a good thing you kept it. I don't know if I would have."

Rogue and Hank looked at each other for a moment before Rogue nodded and turned away, holding the flask of the mutant cure tight in her hand as she made her way back to her room. Meanwhile, in the office of Professor Xavier, he was talking to the mutant who had told them about the virus and the mutant, Sinister.

"So Magneto's really dead?" Remy asked.

"I'm afraid so." Xavier responded.

"Well...what's gonna happen to me?"

"Your free to leave."

"Really? I mean, you guys aren't gonna have me arrested or anything?"

"No, you couldn't help your actions, and you informed us to what was going on. We don't feel that you should be arrested."

"Thank you."

Xavier nodded.

"However, if you'd like you may stay here. There's an empty room on the third floor you may use."

"Stay here?" Remy questioned.

"If you'd like. Now if you'd excuse me, Mr. LeBeau I'm about to have a meeting with someone else."

Remy nodded and walked out of the room. He looked around the mansion and decided to see the room the Professor was talking about for himself. Along the way to the staircase, Remy looked ahead and saw Logan leaning against the wall. The two of them stared at each other for a moment before Remy gave the other mutant a nod which Logan returned before Remy continued along and headed up the staircase.

Back at the office, Xavier was waiting at his desk before a knock on the door came and the door slowly opened as Jean stuck her head in.

"You wanted to see me, Professor?"

"Yes, Jean." Xavier smiled. "Please sit down."

Jean walked further into the room and look the seat across from the Professor.

"Jean, I need to talk to you about your rather...advanced abilities."

"What about it?"

"Now that this is all over, we'll be going back to what we were doing in the beginning. I will teach you how to manage your powers so that you have better control over them."

"Professor, my control is fine. In fact, I've never felt so focused."

"It's not that Jean." Xavier then gave her a look. "I know you used your powers to cure John of the virus. Way before Magneto ever took the cure."

Jean then looked down before shaking her head.

"What could I do, Professor? He was going to die. He probably wouldn't have made it another hour, how could I do nothing?"

"You did a great thing, Jean." Xavier assured. "I'm just concerned. I've never seen a mutant with so much power before, and you know how I feel about the misuse of power."

"You think I'm going to misuse my powers?" Jean asked.

"It's not that, Jean. It's that I want you to be careful. I care too much about you to see...something happen to you again. Remember, with great power...comes an even greater responsbility."

Jean then nodded.

"Okay."

Jean then walked out of the office and headed to the Danger Room where see sensed Scott was. When she reached the room, she saw that Scott was firing his optic beams at a target set up a far distance away. His eyes lit up red before they fired off a powerful blast that nailed the target. Jean then noticed he still raised his hand up to his temple when he fired, as though he still had his visor on.

Scott then looked over and smiled when he saw Jean.

"You're still raising your hand to your head when you fire." Jean said.

"Oh yeah." Scott smirked. "Old habits, I guess."

Scott wiped off a bit of sweat from a towel and looked at Jean. He noticed she looked a little upset.

"Are you okay?"

"Fine."

The two of them then walked to the elevator and look it up to there room. Once there, Jean took a deep breath and turned to ask Scott a question.

"Scott, when I was gone...what made you leave? What made you come back to Alkali Lake?"

"I kept having these visions of you drowning, crying out to me to save you." Scott responded. "I wasn't sure whether that was really you calling me telepathically or if I was going crazy. Then I eventually found this."

Scott then picked up Jean's phoenix pendant off the dresser and held it in his hand, showing it to her.

"Your pendant appeared on the dresser one night. I don't know how it got there, but I thought it was a sign. Something about it guided me back to Alkali Lake. Back to you, Jean."

Jean took it from him and ran her finger over the pendant while lost in thought.

"The Phoenix...a mythical bird. It dies in flames to be reborn from it's ashes. It's life incarnate, now and forever."

"That's kind of how you rose out of the lake." Scott responded. "Like a phoenix."

"Should that be my name?" Jean asked.

Scott's brows furrowed.

"What?"

"My codename. I never did have one like the rest of you."

"You never could come up with one."

"Well now I am."

"Alright...Phoenix. It sounds good to me."

Jean then leaned in and Scott steps in to her. They took each other in their arms, embracing tenderly. Jean then opened her eyes and began to glow orange. However, while all this was going on at the mansion, Sinister was walking up the steps to a large building. It looked to be some oversized nightclub, and on the front of the doors, the words read, "The Hellfire Club."

The End.


	47. X5

XXXXXX

_There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. To enlighten the people generally, and the tyranny and oppressions of the body and mind with quickly vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day._

XXXXXX

Sitting outside early in the morning, Professor Charles Xavier gazed upon his students and staff as they took their seats for the memorial that was being held today. And while it may have been a happy day for some, maybe many, it wasn't one for him. As today was the day he was aknowledging the death of his old friend Erik Lehnserrh.

He had debated weither or not to do this all week, knowing what had become of friend, knowing the horrible things he had done in his life but he finally decided that it was the right decision, since he was honoring Erik, not Magneto.

Erik was a man he had known for thirty years. Twenty of those years they had spent as friends, they had built this school together, recruted students, built Cerebro. The last ten, Xavier had spent trying to stop Erik from carrying out his plans for mutant supremacy.

Now, all that was over.

Back inside, as the remaining few were exiting out to the backyard, Rogue was standing in front of the mirror pulling on her black leather gloves when a voice got her attention.

"Hey, kid."

She turned her head to see Logan standing behind her.

"Hey."

"You know, you don't have to go to this thing if you don't want. I'm sure the Professor will understand."

"No...I want to go."

"You sure?"

She nodded, although she really didn't understand why. Magneto had strapped her in a machine and tried to kill her in the past, yet she was attending a memorial for him. But yet, Logan was going as well, and she knew for a fact that he didn't like Magneto either.

"What about you? You're history with him isn't that great either."

"Well...I really don't know why I'm going." Logan admitted. "I guess it's just to hear what the Professor has to say."

"Same here."

They continued to look at each other for a moment before Rogue spoke again.

"It's kinda funny, you know? We've always thought of Magneto has the 'bad guy', the one we're training to fight. Now that he's gone, maybe we won't have so much to deal with from now one."

"Wishful thinking." Logan responded. "We'll always have things to deal with, it's just the way it is around here."

Rogue sighed, knowing he was right. Over the course of just one year, they had dealt with Striker, the mutant cure being released, and the virus. It was always something.

And with the mutant we had released the virus not being caught yet, she was sure that they would end up having to deal with him too.

"I know." She then took a deep breath. "That's why I'm starting to get sick of this place."

Logan raised an eyebrow.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

The two of them finally headed outside, Logan walked to the left and took his seat with a row that had Scott, Jean, Ororo, Kurt, and Henry in it. Rogue walked to the right and sat with Bobby, John, Peter, Warren, and Kitty. The younger students sat in the back of them.

Upon seeing that everyone was here, Xavier cleared his throat and began speaking.

"Today, we are here to honor the man who gave his life in order to save countless others, both human and mutant alike, from dying from a terrible virus."

John's eyes then went to the side for a moment before he focused his attention on Xavier again.

"Erik Lehnserrh was one of two people. He was a holocaust survivor, he was extremely intellegent, charismatic, proud, and a good friend."

He then took a deep breath before he continued.

"He was also a terrorist. A destoryer, someone who was determined to see those he viewed a superior, rule over the world."

Xavier then glanced at the X-Men for a moment before speaking again.

"Erik had seen for himself just how dark humanity can be. He was determined to stop it from happening again, dedicating himself to a cause he deeply believed to be right. And although I, and most deeply disagreed with him, Erik went about it and nothing could change his mind. I believe that my old friend was lost forever. He had become Magneto, and there was nothing I could do to change that.

But just a few days ago, a virus was released into the public. It was affecting both human and mutant alike, and slowly began killing those infected. And for this first time in years, I saw my friend Erik again. He saw what those affected were going through and wanted to put an end to it. He was willing to give his life in order to make sure others didn't suffer, and did so.

Erik wanted to do something meaningful, something that would save others. That is why we are honoring him today, and that is why I chose to remember him as Erik, not Magneto. And at this moment, were ever he is now I believe that his soul has found peace"

He then nodded as made sure to cast a glance at every face in the audience as he continued.

"Erik's story is one we all must know, and learn from. We have to come to such an impasse in the modern world that we must all learn to live together. The chain reaction of evil, hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars, must be broken, or else we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation."

Once the Professor finished his speech, John was the first one to get up and walk away. The members of the X-Men gave the young man a quick glance, knowing that he was once a follower of Magneto and didn't really know what he was going to do next.

Rogue and Bobby glanced at each other before getting up and walking after him.

As everyone else got up, Henry moved forward to Xavier.

"That was very touching, Charles."

He smiled in return.

"Thank you for sticking around."

"It was no problem." Henry assured. "But now, I must go. I called in to my office this morning and was told the President needs to meet with me. I'll be sure to get in contact with you if it's anything important."

Once Henry walked away, Xavier then looked back at Jean and Scott who were standing hand in hand. He made brief eye contact with Jean who began walking towards the door of the mansion as well.


	48. The Hellfire Club

XXXXXX

The Hellfire Club's historic New York mansion stood on Fifth Avenue near Central Park on Manhattan's Upper East Side. The club was known for its renowned parties, and it's extremely wealthy, privileged, and powerful members.

Founded in the 1800's in London, the Hellfire Club began as a meeting place for the highest ranks of British society. There they could meet to make deals and secretly indulge in pleasures that were forbidden by the morality of their time.

Today, the club consisted of business leaders, socialites, and politicians from all over the world…and they were all mutants. And this place was also a secret base for Sebastian Shaw and the rest of the Inner Circle.

Sebastian was laying shirtless on his water bed with a glass of red wine in his hand. A naked woman was laying on her side right next to him as he continued to gaze at the wine.

Just then, a blonde beautiful woman dressed in a expensive white dress with a diamond design entered the room and began walking towards him.

"Hello Emma." Sebastian greeted.

"Sebastian." Emma Frost responded. "Nathaniel is here to see us."

"Yes, he told me that he would be here today."

"What do you think he wants?"

"For his sake, I hope he has a good explanation for what went wrong."

"He said that his virus would work." She nodded.

"Obviously, it didn't."

Emma then eyed the woman laying next to him.

"How is she?"

Sebastian smiled and then rolled Selene over to see that she had a far away look in her eyes, she had died from a drug overdose. He then smirked at he looked back at Emma.

"I think we broke her."

"Yes. It likes like we're going to need a new Black Queen."

He then got to his feet and Emma ran a hand up his chest before reaching up to bite the side of his neck.

As Sebastian got changed, Sinister was waiting in the meeting room standing in front of the club's large round table. And while Sinister was a member of the club, he wasn't apart of the Inner Circle.

The general public considered the club to be a social organization with an irreproachable reputation. However, for generations the Inner Circle had been a secret cabal intent on amassing political and economic power and influence by illicit means.

Suddenly, the door opened and one by one the members of the Inner Circle stepped out, all dressed in old, Victorian clothing that went along with the club's theme.

They each took a seat at the table. All of them had nicknames after chess pieces, and each one was an extremely powerful mutant.

Madelyne Pryor, the Black Rook. She had the power to morph into animals.

Donald Pierce, the White Bishop. He could create and manipluate water.

Mikhail Rasputin, the White Rook. His body could turn into bronze armor.

Henry Leland, the Black Bishop. He had the power to increase or descrease weight in any object.

Emma Frost, the White Queen. She was an empath, able to control people's emotions.

And finally, Sebastian Shaw, the Black King and unofficial leader. He had unlimited strength, and was basically indestructible.

Once they were all seated, Sebastian eyed Sinister and began speaking.

"Well, Nathaniel. What is it that you need to see us about?"

Sighing heavily, Sinister responded.

"I'm sure you all must know by now that the virus didn't work."

"I'm aware. Why is that, Nathaniel?"

"A group of mutants interfered. They call themselves, the X-Men."

"The who?"

"The X-Men." Mikhail spoke up. "They are led by a mutant named Charles Xavier who also runs a school for mutants. My little brother Piotr goes there."

Emma smiled.

"I didn't know you had a little brother. That's cute."

"Yes, cute." Sebastian responded. "But how exactly do you plan to rectify your mistake, Nathaniel?"

"I used my telepathy and picked up the trace of a mutant at the school Mikhail spoke of...I've never sensed such power before. We could use her, bring her over to our side."

"Her?"

"Yes."

"It is true that we need a new Black Queen." Emma spoke.

"And what exactly do we do with her?" Sebastain asked.

"Her power of telepathy is off the chart." Sinister answered. "We could use her, make her do we want. Then, we the ellite can rule."

"Why should go with another plan of yours?"

"This one will work, I guarentee it."

"But the rest of her team, the 'X-Men'." Emma began. "How do we get her away from them?"

Sinister smiled.

"Leave that to me."

"No."

Henry Leland then stood up and addressed the members.

"Give me the chance to capture her. I think I deserve it."

Sebastian nodded.

"You have done fine work over the past few months, Henry. We'll go with your idea first."

"Thank you."

"What do you have in mind?"

"Well, if she really is at a school, all we have to do is kidnap some mutants from it. They'll all coming running to get them back, and that's when we get her."

"How do you know she'll come?"

"She will." Mikhail spoke. "I know the man who runs the school. He is very protective of his students."

"Alright. Let's do it."

Sinister on the other hand didn't look too pleased.

"Alright. But when you fail, we go with my plan."


	49. Ace of Flames

XXXXXX

The wind was blowing a little harder and it was starting to get a little colder that night as Bobby stood outside with John on the basketball court. They weren't playing a game, they just took turns shooting the ball and passing back and forth to each other.

Looking down at his watch, Bobby saw that it was ten till eight and it was getting dark very quickly.

"Hey John, what'd you say we head in?"

John shook his head.

"You head in."

He then threw that ball hard and it nailed the backboard of the hoop. Bobby couldn't help but wince at the loud sound as it echoed through the area they were standing before looking at his best friend. He bit his bottom lip, wondering whether or not he should say anything.

The two of them had reconciled their friendship, we're sharing the same bedroom again, but things just felt different.

"John are you okay?"

"Fine."

John walked over and picked up the ball but Bobby followed him and put his hand on his shoulder.

"What's bothering you?" Bobby asked. "You know you can talk to me, right?"

Shrugging his hand off his shoulder, John walked to the three point line of the court and bounced the ball once before letting it rest in his hands.

"My leader is dead." John finally answered. "That's what's wrong."

John didn't respond as he threw the ball, and it again hit the backboard with a loud thud. Bobby sighed, knowing that John believed in what Magneto was doing. Now that he was gone, his friend must have felt more lost than ever.

"I know it must be hard-" Bobby began.

"Don't give me that shit." John snapped. "You don't know anything."

He then went after the ball but stopped mid-stride.

"What the hell am I supposed to do now?"

"Stay here. You know the Professor will give you another chance."

"Stay here." John almost laughed. "You know Bobby, I didn't leave this place because deep down I really liked it here."

"I know."

Bobby really didn't know what to say to him. But he did have one question on his mind, one he needed to have answered.

"Rogue asked you to stay. Are you?"

"For now." He answered before looking at Bobby. "But I need to tell the others."

"The others?"

"The Brotherhood. They don't know that Magneto is dead. I need to tell them, I'm going tomorrow morning."

"Alright."

Then, for the first time in a while John took out his shark lighter and flicked it open and closed. It was a habit he broke while in the Brotherhood because the clicking drove Magneto crazy. That's why he developed the wrist lighter for him. But by the third time, he found he had trouble lighting it.

"I'm running out of fluid." John smirked. "I need to get another one."

"I'm going to the mall tomorrow." Bobby responded. "I'll pick one up for you."

"No way, I'm choosing my own."

"What? You don't trust me? I was the one who got you that if you recall."

Bobby then took the lighter from John's hand and turned it over as he looked at it. He tried to light it, but it wouldn't do anything this time.

"So, you getting rid of it?"

John took the lighter back.

"No." He said as he stared down at it. "I'll keep it…it has a lot of meaning. It's probably the most sentimental thing I have."

Bobby couldn't help but smile.

"John…that's sweet man." He teased.

His friend looked up at him, his eyes were narrowed but he had a grin on his face.

"Get the hell out of here." He said while giving Bobby a playful push.

Bobby pushed him back and they continued this for a few seconds before Bobby grabbed John into a headlock and began messing up his hair.

John growled as he managed to push his friend away from him. Bobby quickly ran as John chased after him and was able to catch up and tackle him into the large fountain in the back of the mansion. John pinned Bobby down in the water, Bobby struggled under him and took a playful punch in the ribs before managing to kick him off.

Unbeknownst to them, Rogue was watching the whole thing from a window in the third floor with a smile on her face. Just then, a voice got her attention.

"Hello, Chere."

She spun around to see the new arrival, Gambit standing behind her. Rogue looked at him and was immediately intrigued by his red-on-black eyes.

"Hi."

"I didn't get your name. I'm Remy LeBeau."

He then held out his hand for her to shake.

"I'm Rogue."

She took his hand and to her surprise, Remy gently turned it over and slowly brought it up to his lips, giving the top of her gloved hand a kiss.

"Nice to meet you." He smirked.

"Likewise."

She continued looking at Remy and noticed his red eyes watching her intently. They were concentrating completely on her, and the message they whispered was almost…seductive.

"So...you were with Magneto weren't you?"

"For a time." He answered. "He broke me out of prison."

"What did you do?" Rogue asked, aware that she was prying, but unable to contain her curiosity.

"I was the best thief in New Orleans, Chere." Remy told her, not holding anything back. His gloved hand moved a little closer to hers, and Rogue watched it carefully. "So, what's going on out there?"

He heard the noise coming from outside and looking past her out the window, seeing John and Bobby continue their play-fight in the fountain.

"The three of us use to hang out a lot, when John was here." Rogue explained. "Now that he's back, hopefully we will again."

"You and Pyro, were you together?"

Rogue smiled.

"Why?"

"Just wondering." Remy responded.

"No." She answered. "We were just friends. Bobby and I were together, but we aren't anymore."

He nodded.

"Well, it was nice talking to you. Goodnight, Chere."

Remy turned to walk away but Rogue asked;

"Why do you keep calling me that?"

Remy stopped and looked back at her.

"It means 'dear' in French." he smiled.

They stared at each other for another couple of seconds before Remy continued out of the hall and Rogue turned and walked to her bedroom.


	50. Power Struggle

XXXXXX

Opening his eyes the following morning in his bedroom, Scott rolled over to see that Jean was awake as well and was watching him with a smile on her face.

"Sleep well?" She asked.

"Better than in a long time."

He then sat up and rubbed his eyes, then reached over and took the sunglasses off the nightstand and put them on.

"Why are you still wearing those?"

Scott laughed a little as he got dressed.

"I don't know. I guess over the years I've just gotten use to them."

Once he was finished he knelt back down on the bed and gave Jean a small kiss.

"Although I'm glad I don't _have_ to wear them anymore. I get to see you all the time with twenty-twenty vision."

He then got back to his feet as Jean swung her legs over the bed and prepared to get herself ready for the day as well.

"So...now that you're back, what are you going to do?" Scott asked.

"I don't know. Pick up where I left off I guess."

"Yeah, me too. I'll see you later, okay?"

After leaving the room, Scott took the elevator down to the first floor heading to the Danger Room. He wanted to look it over once more before he brought the new recruits down so that he could begin training them. But as he got closer to the doors, his brows furrowed as he heard noise coming from the area.

The doors were sealed closed and there were sounds of explosions coming from inside. Scott then continued his way to the control room and saw that Ororo was sitting at the controls, watching everything that was happening from the inside.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"Logan's training the kids today." She explained. "He has a session with them every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday."

Scott walked closer and looked through the see through glass. Inside, he saw Iceman dodging a laser firing at him as Colossus lifted a damaged car and threw it at a robot.

Angel was flying through the air, holding a holographic person in his grasp before dropping him down to the safe area with the other people.

"Level eight?" Scott asked as he saw what setting it was on. "Is he crazy?"

"Relax, Scott. The kids are doing really good."

What he saw next inside nearly made his jaw drop in shock.

"What the hell is Katharine doing in there?"

Ororo turned her head to see Kitty grabbing a hold of Rogue as a missile came down on the top of them. It phased right through them and exploded, but didn't effect them do to her powers.

"Logan thought that she was ready. She's helped out the team a lot."

"She's only sixteen!"

He then shook his head.

"Get them out of there. Now that I'm back, Logan isn't going to be conducting any more Danger Room sessions."

Ororo then bit her lip as she now looked uncomfortable.

"Scott...I don't know how to tell you this but the Professor made Logan the leader of the team in your absense."

Scott could only stare at her in return.

"What are you talking about?" He finally responded. "I put you in charge when I left."

"Well, you put me in charge of getting the kids ready. Logan agreed to stick around to help, and to be honest he did a good job. The Professor wanted him to stay, so he asked him to lead the team...and he agreed."

"How could the Professor do that? I was only gone a few months."

"We didn't know how long you'd be gone. The team needed a leader-"

"So he asked Logan."

"Yes. And the only way you can lead the team again is that Logan has to agree to step down."

"I can't believe this."

He shook his head in disgust as he looked back out through the window. Colossus grabbed a hold of Logan and threw him through the air. Logan's sliced through a robot's head with his claws in mid air just before Nightcrawler teleported up, caught him and teleported them both back to the ground.

Walking over to the controls, Scott reached over Ororo and pressed the stop button, making the session come to an abrupt hault. The room quickly went back to normal and the team looked around in confusion.

"Scott, please don't." Ororo began but he ignored her as he left the room and headed to the Danger Room.

The doors opened and Scott walked in, casting a glance at the rest of the team.

"What happened?" Kitty asked. "We had another five minutes left."

"Yeah." Peter agreed. "And we were having our best session yet."

"Look, could you all clear out of here please? I need to have a word with Logan."

The rest of the team looked back at Logan, who nodded in return.

"Go ahead. We'll finish this on Wednesday."

Iceman, Rogue, Nightcrawler, Angel, Kitty, and Colossus all walked out of the room as Logan then narrowed his eyes at the other man.

"What the hell do you want?"

"Look, I was told that you have been training the rest of the team since I've been gone. And that's great, but I'm back now, and I'm the leader. So from now on, I'm the one who conducts the Danger Room sessions."

Logan's eyes went to the side as a look of amusement came over his face. He then folded his arms.

"Well, a lot has changed since you've been gone. You may not know this, but the Professor asked me to lead in the team."

"I'm aware." Scott replied with a hard voice. "But I'm back now, so you need to step down."

Logan continued to stare at him before thinking about back when the Professor asked him to lead the team. Since he had been leader, he finally began to feel like he had found his purpose. He no longer thought about his past because he had a reason to do focused on the present.

"That'd be real easy for you wouldn't it?" He finally responded. "Take off for a few months then come back to the way things were?"

"I thought Jean was dead." Scott growled. "I had to get out here, to think of myself for a change."

"Well keep thinking, because I'm the leader of this team now."

Slowly taking off his sunglasses, Scott glared at the other man.

"I've been at this school since I was a teenager. I've led this team for five years. You've haven't even been at this school for a full year! You just came and went as you pleased."

"You're wrong about that. I've been leading this team since the first moment I walked in his place, I led us at Liberty Island and Alkali Lake. I did a better job then you and the Professor knew that."

"You think so?"

Logan nodded.

"And you won't step down?"

"No chance."

Scott then walked over to the door and pressed the button on the wall, making them close. He then turned back around and got into a defensive stance.

"Why don't we just settle this, the old fashioned way?"


	51. Wolverine vs Cyclops

XXXXXX

Logan smirked as he and Cyclops circled each other, both waiting for the other to make the first move. Or make a mistake the other could capitalize on.

"You don't want none of me." Logan began. "Think it through."

"Oh, I've thought about it." Cyclops answered. "I've thought about it for a while now."

It was true. He disliked the other man intensely since the moment he'd met him. Logan had made moves on the love of his life, he had challenged his position as leader, and now in his absence he had taken it from him.

"Then come on, let's see what you've got."

Unable to hold back any longer, Cyclops threw a right hook at Logan but it was caught and Logan spun him around and flung him straight into the wall.

Cyclops let out a sharp cry of pain when he hit but quickly moved out of the way when Logan came at him with a punch of his own. When he moved, Logan's fist hit the wall and it made a dent. After regaining his footing, Cyclops came back with a punch to the ribs but Logan kept coming and nailed him with shot to the jaw that knocked him clean off his feet.

Seeing him down, Logan went to nail Cyclops with another hit but he quickly lunged his leg up and his foot connected with Logan's jaw, making his head snap to the side.

Getting back up, Cyclops quickly threw himself on the other man's back and locked his neck in a chokehold. Logan coughed and gasped for air, but quickly regained his bearings and elbowed Cyclops in the stomach before throwing his head back, nailing him right in the face which sent his sunglasses flying off.

Staggering backwards, Cyclops had to admit to himself that he was fighting a losing battle. No matter what he did, Logan would recover from it faster and kept coming. He could fight forever. The only way he could win was with his powers.

As Logan came at him again, Cyclops' eyes lit up red and a beam was released that nailed Logan in the chest, sending him flying backwards.

He landed on the ground with an 'oof' and grimaced as he touched his chest. For some reason, he had always wondered what it felt like to be hit with one of those blasts, and now he knew. And he knew that it hurt.

After a few more seconds, his healing factor kicked in the pain went away. Logan got back to his feet and cracked his neck.

"Getting a little desperate, huh Scotty?"

"It stings a little, doesn't it?"

"Can't fight without your powers?"

Not bothering to answer, Cyclops followed up with another blast, this time it connected with Logan's shoulder that sent him off balance and running straight into the wall. Rage was now beginning to build within him as he glared up at the other man.

"If that's how you want to do this."

SKINT!

The claws unearthed from both hands as Logan came straight at him. Cyclops quickly fired his optic beam again but Logan jumped and rolled out of the way. He shot again, but Logan dodged again, getting closer towards him and swung his arm.

Cyclops tried to move out of the way but Logan's claws sliced his right arm and he yelled out in pain as he threw himself at the floor, rolled once and got back up only to see Logan coming at him again.

Logan pushed him against the wall and his claws were right up against his chin as Cyclops grabbed his wrists and tried to push him away.

"I'm gonna teach you about respect, boy." Logan growled.

"Respect…my ass." Cyclops responded as he struggled against him.

Finally he chose the last resort and got a knee up, nailing Logan in the crotch. Logan yelled out in pain as Cyclops managed to get off the wall, but Logan only swung at him again, his claws cutting his back this time, causing Cyclops to let out another yell of pain.

Cyclops hit the ground and his eyes widened as a crazed Logan came right at him and prepared to stab him right in the chest.

He yelled out in a panic as he tried to crawl away but just when Logan's claws were just mere inches from his chest, his whole body froze and became a living statue.

"Stop!" Yelled a voice as the Danger Room doors opened. "Stop!"

Cyclops looked over to see Jean running in with a look that held both concern and anger.

"What the hell are you two doing?"

"Me?" Cyclops asked incredulously. "Look at him! He tired to kill me!"

"Why did you even challenge him to fight in the first place?"

"The Professor put him in charge of the team when I was away. Now that I'm back, he needs to step down!"

Jean frowned as she then looked at the cut on Scott's arm that was dripping blood to the floor. She went to gently grab his arm but he took a step back from her before she could.

Cyclops then winced as he touched his wounded arm before looking back at Logan's frozen form before shaking his head.

"I can't believe that you're attracted to this guy."

He walked around her to head for the exit but Jean quickly ran over and stood in front of the doors.

"Wait, hold on. Who said that I'm attracted to him?"

"What? You think I don't know? You think I didn't see the way you two were around each other when he first got here?"

Jean looked down and took a deep breath. She decided to be completely honest with him.

"Scott...maybe I was attracted a little. But I never would have done anything that would put our relationship in jeopardy."

"So you admit that you did like him."

"Yes I did."

"Then go be with him." He spat before pushing past her and out of the room.

"Scott!" She yelled but he ignored her and kept going.

Jean sighed before looking back over at Logan. She walked closer towards him and prepared to unfreeze him but something stopped her. She looked into his eyes and saw the rage that they held.

He really did get out of control sometimes and if she hadn't been here he could have really killed Scott. He really needed something, something that would calm him a little, something that would make him a little less aggressive.

Slowly putting her hands up to Logan's temples, Jean began to concentrate as her eyes began to glow orange.


	52. Vital Information

XXXXXX

Back in Magneto's cold, metal, underground bunker the remaining members of the Brotherhood were doing what they could to keep themselves busy. It had now been over a week since Magneto had left with Pyro and while Callisto was able to pick up Pyro's trace, she wasn't able to do so for the leader of the group.

They were a little worried because Psylocke had gone out a few days ago to grab a newspaper and found out that the virus was apparently cured. What they didn't understand is why Magneto and Pyro hadn't returned yet.

Down in the bunker, Toad and Blob were sitting across from each other at a table smoking cigars while playing poker while Callisto was sitting with Psylocke in what could be called the living room of the bunker.

"This blows." Psylocke finally spoke.

"I agree." Blob echoed as he picked up a card.

Psylocke then looked at Callisto.

"Why are we still here? Why don't we just regroup with the rest of the Morlocks?"

"Because Magneto is more powerful than any of us. He's a real leader, and when he comes up with a new plan I will call on them."

Callisto then looked to the side as she picked up something and got to her feet.

"What is it?"

"Pyro is here." She answered.

Toad heared her and threw his cards down as he got up as well.

"About time."

The four of them gathered has the door to the place opened and footsteps came down the stairs. When Pyro got to the bottom he quickly noticed all of them and then frowned a little, wondering how to break this to them.

"Where have you been?" Toad asked. "Where's the boss?"

"There's no easy way to say this so I'll just say it." Pyro answered. "Magneto is dead."

No one said a word after that. The rest of the Brotherhood just stared at the pyromaniac in shock. Finally Callisto asked;

"How?"

"He gave his life to cure the virus."

"So what are we going to do?" Blob asked.

"Go our seperate ways I guess. Or go back to what we were doing before we ended up here." Pyro said before looking over them one last time. "Thanks for fighting with us."

He then turned back around to head up the stairs and out of the bunker, back to Xavier's school. Toad looked down as he thought about this whole thing.

Magneto was dead. Mystique was dead. Sabertooth was dead. He was the only one left of the group. The Brotherhood was no more.

"Well, I guess there's no reason not to meet up with the Morlocks now." Callisto spoke while looking at Psylocke. "You guys want to join us? We could use you."

Blob shrugged.

"Why not? I got nothing else to do."

Psylocke nodded and then looked to Toad.

"What about you?"

"No."

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know."

Toad then headed up the stairs and left the bunker as well. As he reached the streets of Manhattan he put his hood up so it would hide his green skin a little better as he walked among the people. He needed a drink and as he kept walking the first place he came across was the Hellfire Club.

It seemed like a fancy place, but he didn't care. Let the people in here try to throw him out.

He opened the front door and headed inside. The place certainly was fancy as the floor had black tile and walls had a nice red, black, and gold design. Instead of going to the bar, Toad began to wonder around a little until he reached a closed door and heard voices coming from behind it.

"And if, along the way we manage to acquire or eliminate some the X-Men, so much the better." Said a male voice.

After he heard that, Toad became much more interested and put his ear against the door.

Inside, Sebastian was talking with both Sinister and Emma.

"Shaw, you may be the chairman of the Hellfire Club and a powerful mutant." Sinister responded. "But if you think the X-Men are going to be pushovers, you best think again. They are dangerous."

"So are we, Nathaniel." Shaw responded before looking at Emma. "And they will soon discover that, won't they my White Queen?"

Emma smirked.

"As you say, Sebastian."

However, before either of the men could speak again Emma said;

"Wait just a minute."

She walked over to the door slowly before pulling it open and Toad nearly fell right in. The three of them looked at the mutant and smiled.

"Well...what do we have here?"

XXXXXX

Inside of the Oval Office of the White House, President McKenna was sitting at his desk waiting for the arrival of the Secretary of Mutant Affairs. He got up and then walked over to the window to look out at the sky when someone knocked on the door.

The door opened and one of his staff members stuck his head in.

"Mr. President. Henry McCoy is here."

"Send him in."

After a few moments, the blue mutant walked into the room while adjusting his tie. He walked over to the President and shook his hand.

"Mr. President."

"Thank you for seeing me on such short notice."

"No problem."

Hank then sat down across from the desk as McKenna took his seat across from him.

"It looks like the virus has been completly wiped out." Hank began. "My staff has been checking with the hospitals that were being overrun and the people that had been checked in with the affects are cured."

"That's good news, Henry. But I have something even more important to alert you of. Something that is going to effect mutants all over this country."

"What do you mean?"

"This virus scared a lot of people. A lot of people died from this. The majority of the public believe that a mutant was responsible for the virus."

Lowering his eyes, Hank didn't want to admit that they were right about that.

"How could they know that? This virus was affecting both humans and mutants."

"I'm aware, Henry." The President responded. "But in your absence the Senate passed the Mutant Registration Act."

Hank looked at the President in shock.

"I didn't hear anything on the news."

"Yes. They're trying to keep it quiet."

"What are you going to do."

"I'm going to veto it."

Exhaling deeply in relief, Hank shook his head as he got to his feet.

"Thank god."

"Wait a minute Hank." McKenna continued as he got up as well. "I am going to veto it, but I fear that congress has enough votes to override it."

"That's bad."

"Yes. I know."

"You have to speak to them, Mr. President. If the registration act becomes law, I promise you it will have a terrible effect. Some mutants will go along with it, but some won't. You're going to have a war on your hands."

"I'm aware, Hank. I'm going to do what I can. But I'm going to need your help as well. I need you by my side."

Hank nodded.

"Very well, Mr. President."

The meeting was now over and Hank left the Oval Office and went straight for his car. Before he did anything, Professor Xavier and the rest of the team needed to know about this latest turn of events.


	53. A Night on the Town

XXXXXX

Night fall came as John had arrived back at the mansion and was currently sitting by the window of the bedroom he shared with Bobby, looking out at the stars, thinking. He was thinking about what he was going to do next when a voice got his attention.

"Hey."

He looked over at the open door and saw Rogue standing there, and by the way she was dressed she looked like she was getting ready to head out.

"Where are you going?"

"Out to a nightclub. It's kinda a thing that Warren put together. A group of us is going, Peter, Kitty, I think Ororo is too."

"So you're into the group thing?"

Rogue playfully narrowed her eyes at him as he smirked at his own joke.

"Anyway." She continued. "Do you want to go with us?"

"Isn't Bobby going?"

"No. He said he wasn't in the mood."

John looked down at his hands for a moment. It might do him good to get out of the mansion, to go out and have fun with the rest of them.

"Why not?" He finally answered as he went to the closet to grab his leather jacket.

"Great. I'll wait for you in the hall."

Standing by the front door of the mansion, Peter was waiting along side Warren and Kitty who were busying talking with each other.

"This is a bad idea, Warren." Kitty said. "I'm not eighteen, they're not going to let me into this place."

"Kitty." Warren sighed. "You can walk through walls. You don't have to worry about showing ID to get in."

Kitty's eyes then went to the side as she remembered.

"Oh."

Peter then shook his head.

"I can't believe I'm going to this thing alone."

"Maybe you'll meet someone there." Warren responded.

"I wouldn't count on it. I haven't had much luck with girls."

'I can't see why." Kitty said. "You're tall, have big muscles, nice eyes…"

She then trailed off as she noticed Warren staring at her with a look of disbelief.

"What?"

Before he could respond, Ororo came around the corner with her hair done and in a nice red and black outfit.

"We're almost ready to go, is everyone here?"

"We're still waiting on Rogue, she went up to ask John if wanted to go."

Ororo nodded as she continued on to find Kurt.

"I've never hung out with John before." Warren remarked. "Is there anything I should know?"

"Try not to piss him off." Peter answered, and Kitty nodded in agreement.

Walking into the classroom Kurt taught in, Ororo saw him getting ready for tomorrows activities and got his attention.

"Kurt."

He turned his attention to her and his eyes widened a little when he saw what she was wearing.

"Ororo. You look nice."

"Thank you." She smiled. "I came to tell you that we're going out to a club. Would you like to come?"

"I'm afraid I can't."

"Why not?"

"I think you know the answer."

She frowned. She felt bad for Kurt, knowing that he couldn't go in public the way he looked. Anytime he did, they had to come up with a disguise for him.

"We can use the make-up for you and hide your tail and everything. We've done it before."

"No." Kurt shook his head. "It would take too long and you look ready to go. I don't want to spoil things, you go. Have a nice time."

Ororo nodded.

"Alright."

Upstairs, Rogue continued waiting in the hallway when suddenly she saw Remy coming up the steps and smiled when he saw her.

"Hello, Chere."

"Hi, Remy." She smiled.

"You look nice."

"I'm going out tonight with the others."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. Do you want to come with us?"

Before he could answer he noticed John step out of his room while adjusting the collar of his jacket. He must have been going with her.

"Maybe some other time."

"Okay. I'll see you later."

Remy nodded and continued on, sharing a brief look with John as they passed each other.

Once the group was all ready and together they headed out. The club was a few blocks away from the mansion. It was called "The Edge" and it was a pretty big club, very bright with purple and green neon lights on the outside.

While Kitty got in through another wall, Ororo, Warren, Peter, John, and Rogue all came in through the front and got a couple of tables in the back and ordered drinks. The Ready Set was blaring from the speakers as they watched other people dance and the lighting kept switching from green to blue to red to purple.

After Warren took another sip of his drink he took Kitty's hand and they both got up to head to the dance floor. Rogue couldn't help but look on in envy at the couples hand's together, knowing she couldn't do that with anyone...unless she took the cure. She really didn't know what had been stopping her.

She had the very last sample of the mutant cure in the dresser drawer for months now and still hadn't took it. Rogue then adjusted her gloves and made sure every part of her body was covered up. There was a lot of people and she didn't want to accidently touch someone.

After doing that, she looked towards John.

"John, do you want to dance?"

The pyromaniac gave her a look.

"No."

"Come on."

"I'll dance with you, Rogue." Peter spoke.

"Alright. At least someone can have a good time."

John snorted a little as he watched Peter and Rogue get up and head to the dance floor. He then picked up his drink and looked over to see Ororo staring off into space.

Even though it was anything but quiet in here, he still felt uneasy sitting here by himself with her and reluctantly spoke up.

"Ms. Munroe, what's wrong?" He asked.

Ororo then shook her head, as if being shook awake.

"Nothing, I'm alright. And you can call me Ororo."

"It's a little awkward."

"Bobby has the same problem."

John smirked a little as Ororo stirred her drink with her straw.

"I just wish that Kurt could have come along. I feel bad for him, he missed out on a lot."

"Are you two...seeing each other?"

"Seeing each other? No." Ororo answered. "We're just friends."

"Good. That would be a little weird."

"What would be weird about it?"

"He's blue." John answered and Ororo had to stop herself from looking at her student as if he were crazy. "And he looks like an elf."

"Why does that matter to you?"

"It doesn't."

Ororo then shook her head as she looked out at Kitty and Warren, and Rogue and Peter on the dance floor. She then leaned over and took John's hand.

"Come dance."

"With you? Are you kidding?"

But it was too late as Ororo had him up and heading straight to the dance floor. John then groaned as she wrapped her arms around his neck even though the music wasn't slow.

"See? It's not so bad."

"I'm dancing with my former teacher." John responded. "It's really bad."

Ororo smiled but before she could respond she looked around and suddenly everyone around them froze. People had stopped dancing, the others who were at the tables stopping moving, talking. It was just the six of them still moving.

"What's going on?"

Suddenly, all six fell to the ground grabbing at their heads in pain. At the entrance of the club, Sinister walked in with Henry Leland at his side. They looked upon them before men wearing tan masks and black hoods ran past them.

"Seize them!" Henry ordered the Hellfire Club's soldiers.

The soldiers ran down and grabbed at the fallen group of mutants. John tried to resist but one of the soldiers zapped him with a cattle prod. The same was done to Peter as they were all dragged to their feet and taken out of the club to waiting cars outside.

The last person to be taken was Kitty but she shook her captive off and began running towards the back of the club.

"After her!" Henry yelled.

The soldiers ran after her but she just when he was about to grab her Kitty went straight through the wall and he collided with it face first.

Henry growled when he saw what happened but waved his hand.

"Forget it, we have enough of them."

The cars that contained Ororo, John, Warren, Rogue, and Peter sped off as Sinister sat in the backseat of the last car, keeping them telepathically subdued. Henry then got into the backseat with him.

"One got away." Sinister remarked.

"It doesn't matter. The rest of them will come to rescue their teammates. Jean Grey will be ours tonight."

As they finally drove off and followed the other cars back to the hideout, Kitty was sitting out in the alley behind the club, catching her breath as she tried to understand what had just happened.

She and her friends had been telepathically attacked, and they had been kidnapped. Kitty then stumbled up to her feet and began running back to the school as fast as she could.


	54. Zone of Inhibition

XXXXXX

When Storm finally came too she couldn't see as her eyes were blindfolded, her hands also cuffed behind her back. She got to her feet but before she could call out to someone a fist slammed into her face, knocking her back down.

She was then kicked in the ribs before a hand grabbed her head and the blindfold was pulled from her face. She winced when the lights blinded her but once her eyes adjusted she was now staring into the grinning face of Toad.

"Remember me?"

Storm was so shocked that she couldn't respond as Toad slammed his fist down on her again.

"I thought you were dead." Storm said as she spat blood out of her mouth.

"You need to check your eyes."

As then raised his foot and brought it down on her chest.

Meanwhile the rest of the group was waking up as well. John tried to lung up before yelling out in pain as his head hit something metal. He looked around wildly and saw that he was inside a circular cage that was hanging from ceiling. Rogue, Colossus, and Angel were also in cages that were hanging right next to his.

"What the hell is this?" He asked as he dug in his pockets for his lighter but couldn't find it. "Are you guys alright?"

"Where are we?" Angel groaned as he got to his feet.

"I don't know." Rogue answered. "I just woke up too."

She then looked around at the others and noticed one person was missing.

"Where's Ororo?"

Angel looked around as well and saw his girlfriend wasn't there.

"Where's Kitty?"

"I don't know. Maybe she got anyway."

The yelling woke Colossus up as well. Once he saw were he was he put his hands on the cage to bend the bars but he was immediately shocked when he did so.

"Don't bother Piotr. I took into account how strong you are." Said a voice.

A figure stepped forward and Colossus was shocked to see that he was now staring at his older brother, Mikhail. He snarled and grabbed the bars again and was shocked again.

"You missed me, I can tell." Mikhail said in an amused voice.

"Peter, who is this guy?" Angel asked.

"Peter? You're not even going by your real name anymore."

"It's my real name now." Colossus spoke.

"And you lost your accent as well. I suppose you left it back in Russia."

Mikhail then looked at the rest of the group.

"Piotr is my brother."

"We aren't brothers anymore." Colossus growled. "You killed our parents."

"They were humans." Mikhail responded causing Colossus to grab the bars again only to get yet another shock.

"What are you doing with us?" Rogue then asked.

"At the moment, we're waiting."

Henry Leland then stepped out beside his fellow Hellfire Club member.

"And we're using you all as bait." He finished.

Back in the room Storm was in, Toad kicked her once again but finally stopped when a hand grabbed his shoulder.

"Alright, Toad." Sinister said. "We don't want her dead...yet."

Toad finally stopped his assult as Sinister grabbed the radio to communicate with the club's soldiers that were securing the perimeter outside the abandoned building they had taken the group of mutants too.

"You all keep your eyes open. I have a feeling we're going to have company soon."

XXXXXX

Back at the mansion, Xavier was in his office getting tomorrow's assignments ready for the classes he taught. Once he finished up he was about ready to turn in for the night when suddenly Kitty phased through the wall. He jumped and quickly became concerned when he saw her state. Her shirt was slightly torn and she looked scared out of her mind.

"Professor!"

"Katharine, what happened to you?"

"The others were attacked! They've been kidnapped!"

"By who?"

"I don't know."

"Alright, calm down. Tell me what happened."

"We were at the club when suddenly everyone froze. Then these men came out of no where and attacked us."

"Alright. I'll get the others down here."

After about ten minutes, Logan, Scott, Jean, Kurt, and Bobby were all downstairs fully dressed and the Professor was explaining the situation.

"Apparently the rest of the team was attacked and taken to some location. Katharine was the only one who got away."

"Where are they?" Scott asked.

"I don't know. They're too far away for me to pick them up and Cerebro still doesn't work."

"I can tell you were they are." Jean then spoke.

She then put her hand up to her temple and concentrated. After a few moments she began speaking...

"They're in a warehouse twenty minutes away from here. I'll give you the exact loaction when we're in the jet."

"Wait, you said they were attacked." Logan began. "Maybe it's the mutant who released the virus."

"Perhaps." Xavier agreed.

"So what's the plan?"

"I think you're suppose to come up with that, you're the leader." Scott said in the hard tone.

Normally, Logan would have responded with a insult or two but for some reason he felt really mellow ever since his fight with Scott in the Danger Room. He didn't know why, he just felt more calm and relaxed.

"Why don't we just get there first, then we'll make a plan."

The team the exited out of the Professor's office to go straight to the X-Jet but to their surprise Remy was waiting for them all outside the door.

"I couldn't help but overhear what's going on. You'll need any help?"

"It's okay, we've got it covered." Scott responded.

"I don't know." Logan spoke. "We might need all the help we can get."

"He isn't a member of the team."

"Why don't we give him a chance to prove himself?" Jean suggested.

Scott looked at her for a moment before looking at Remy who was smirking at him. Scott then shook his head as he passed them all by. No one else said a word as they continued their way to the jet, Remy following them. Kurt made a move to open the glass cases to get the uniforms out but Logan shook his head.

"I don't think we have time to get our uniforms on, Kurt."

"Alright."

He closed the case and continued on. They all walked up the ramp, Scott and Jean heading to the pilots seats with the others taking the seats behind them, strapping on their seatbelts as they silently prepared themselves for this unexpected mission.

Once the engines were started, the basketball court opened up and the jet slowly rised out before taking off, with Jean informing Scott of the exact location of were the rest of the team was being held.


	55. Banning Together

XXXXXX

Outside the warehouse, the Hellfire Club's soldiers were walking back and forth down the alleyway waiting for the arrival of the rest of the X-Men as they were told would probably arrive soon. They held cattle-prods in their hands as they just continued to wait.

"See anything yet?" One of the soldiers asked, his voice slightly muffled by his mask.

"No, nothing."

But right after that, a blast of energy was sent right at them. It hit both soldiers sending them flying backwards. Phoenix then led the rest of the team down the alley, her whole body glowing which brightened up the dark alleyway. It attracted the attention of other soldiers which Cyclops took out with an optic blast and Iceman sent a wave of frost at another, freezing him in place.

Nightcrawler then teleported up to the roof and saw that there was a door that would lead down to the inside of the warehouse.

"You guys! Up here!" He yelled.

But before any of the team could respond, a car suddenly speed down the alleyway and began driving straight towards them. Phoenix narrowed her eyes and put her hand up, stopping the car in its tracks and destorying it instantly with an explosion, killing two soldiers inside.

"Jean!" Cyclops yelled as he looked on in shock. "What have you done?"

"I had to stop them." She responded, no emotion in her voice at all.

"You didn't have to turn the car into instant junk. Now they know we're here!"

"It doesn't matter. They will be no match for us."

Cyclops continued to look at Phoenix, but with a simple nod levitated herself and the rest of the team up to the roof. When they all landed Gambit went over to the door and saw that it was locked.

"Stand back." Wolverine said.

"No need." Gambit responded while picking the lock. "No lock can keep me out when I want in."

Gambit sucessfully opened the door and the team headed down a staircase that led down to the third floor of the warehouse. Once they reached the bottom, more soldiers came out of no where with weapons. Cyclops blasted one while Nightcrawler teleported and took out the remaining two.

"Wait." Phoenix said. "Storm is this way." She said pointing towards the other end of the hall. "The others are down there."

"Me and Jean will rescue Storm." Cyclops continued. "You guys get the others. We'll all then meet back up on the roof."

Wolverine nodded and led the rest of the group. They continued on until they reached another door and a voice yelled out;

"You guys! Are you out there!"

Wolverine quickly ran when he heard Rogue's voice but when he entered he fell to his knees. A strange feeling overtook him, his body felt heavy, he felt like he weighted over five-hundred pounds.

Leland was standing over him, continuing to add more and more weight to him before finally Wolverine fell through the floor and kept going, crashing though the second floor, the first floor, and contined on until he crashed through the wearhouse's basement.

A blast then hit Leland's chest, throwing him backwards with such a force that it sent him crashing out the window. Gambit entered the room with a glowing card in hand but was grabbed from behind and lifted off his feet.

Mikhail was in his bronze form and had him lifted up by the collar of his trench coat. Gambit was then thrown forward at a fast speed and crashed against the cage Pyro was hanging in.

Iceman and Nightcrawler entered the room and saw the rest of the team inside cages that were hanging from the ceiling.

"Bobby! Get us out!" Angel yelled.

"Kurt, I'll help Remy. You get them out." Iceman said.

But before he could help a blast of water struck his chest and knocked him off his feet as Donald Pierce stood over him and smirked.

"Come on, boy." He taunted. "Let's see what you've got."

Iceman got up and sent a wave of ice at him but Pierce deflected it with ease.

"I'm not impressed."

Nightcrawler then teleported from cage to cage, getting Pyro, Angel, Colossus, and Rogue out one by one.

Colossus then metaled up and ran over to Mikhail before he could do anymore to Gambit, lifted him up and threw him backwards through a wall.

"You guys stand back." Colossus ordered. "This is between me and him."

He then stepped through the hole he created and the two brothers began trading punches, but not really having much effect due to each ones respective metal covering their bodies.

Iceman continued to fight Pierce who nailed him with another strong blast of water that knocked him down. Pierce then stood over him and began spraying him in the face with water, attempting to drown him.

Rogue saw what was happening and quickly pulled off a glove. She ran over to them and touched the back of Pierces' neck, draining his life force. Pierce gasped and threw himself backwards. He hit the ground while Rogue tumbled backwards and ended up falling threw the broken window Leland had gone though.

Just as Rogue screamed for help, Gambit stuck his head out the window and grabbed her hand...her bare hand.

"Wait, Remy!"

But it was too late. One he touched her hand she began draining him. He gasped as he struggled to pull her in. Iceman was now on his feet and after freezing Pierce to the floor went over and helped Gambit pull her back in.

Once they were on the floor, Rogue looked Gambit over as he breathed deeply, the veins on the face starting to disappear.

"Remy, I'm sorry." Rogue said. "I should have told you before that I drain people's energy when I touch them."

However, Gambit only smirked in return.

"Chere, you can drain Remy's energy any time you want. I've got plenty to spare."

By this point, Wolverine had made his way back up from the basement and looked around widely once he got inside the room.

"Is everyone okay?"

"We're fine." Pyro responded.

Colossus then walked through the hole in the wall, carrying Mikhail's unconscious body over his shoulder. He then threw him inside the cage he had once been in and closed the door.

"Alright." Wolverine said. "Let's head to the roof."

While they headed back to the roof, Phoenix and Cyclops continued to make their way down the hall were Phoenix sensed Storm was being held. But as she got closer to the door, something began to cloud her telepathy.

"Something's wrong." She muttered.

A telekinetic push forced the door open and Phoenix saw Storm laying on the ground with her hands tied behind her back. She looked like she'd been beaten up.

"Storm!"

"Wait, Jean! It's a trap!"

But the warning was too late. As soon as Phoenix stepped in, electricity filled her body as she was standing on a hidden electric current on the floor.

"Jean!" Cyclops yelled.

He was about to run in to help but he fell to the ground, grasping at his head as he was telepathically attacked. Standing in the shadows of the room, out of sight, Sinister then turned his attention to Phoenix.

Now that she was distracted, she would be weaker to telepathically subdue. He focused all her power on her and slowly, she fell to her knees.

Sinister smiled but before he could step out from his hiding place, her body began to glow. Slowly standing back up, Phoenix was glowing as her eyes were burning orange as she fought against his hold.

Even in her current state, she knew someone was in her head. Sinister winced as he was forced out, and knowing that he would soon be overpowered, Sinister released in his hold and quickly ran from the room, out of the building.

The electric current then blew up and Phoenix took a deep breath.

"Jean! Are you alright?"

Cyclops was now back up and looking her over.

"I'm fine, help her."

He went over to Storm and undid the ropes before picking her up in her arms and cradle-carrying her to the roof. Once they were all there, Phoenix levitated them all to the roof of the building across the street, were the X-Jet was.

"Is Kitty okay?" Angel asked as they all got in.

"She was the one who told us what happened." Wolverine answered. Cyclops was about to enter the jet as well but looked back at Phoenix who was still staring at the warehouse they had just fought in.

She continued eyeing it before sending a large blast of energy at the building. It exploded and instantly became an inferno.

Cyclops jumped when he saw it.

"Jean! There's people in there!"

"People who tried to kill us." She answered simply as she got on the jet. The others looked just as shocked as Cyclops.

She ignored them all as she went to the pilots seat, Cyclops close behind.

"Jean-"

"Those animals got what they deserved." She said, cutting him off. Phoenix then powered up the jet and began taking it back to the mansion.


	56. Yesterday's Promise

XXXXXX

Charles Xavier was happy that all of his X-Men came back last night no worse for wear as he sat in his office the next morning waiting for Henry. He had called the other day and told him that he had some urgent news to tell him and would rather do it in person than over the telephone.

Someone then knocked on the door and it was pushed open. Hank walked in wearing a black suit and smiled when he saw the Professor.

"Henry." He smiled. "Nice to see you."

"Charles." Hank responded as he walked over to take a seat in front of his desk. "We have a problem."

"There usually is."

"This one is bigger. The news isn't covering it for some reason but I've come to let you know that the Senate has passed the Mutant Registration Act. It's expected to reach President McKenna's desk by tomorrow."

Xavier nodded as he took in the information, but didn't react at all. That was just the way the Professor was in all the time Hank had known him. Very hard to rattle, always thinking calmly.

"Do you know what the President plans to do?"

"He told me that he will veto it immediately."

"And you believe him?"

"Yes, he isn't the problem. The problem is that he feels congress will be able to override his veto."

Hank then took a deep breath.

"People have gotten scared. I think that the virus is what finally pushed everyone to their breaking point."

"It's understandable."

"And the worst thing is all the progress we've made ever since the mutant's division was created. Protests from humans are stopping, mutants are revealing themselves at their own will now, more businessess are hiring mutants." He listed. "If this registration act becomes law everything that's happened will become undone."

"Unfortunately I believe that will be the case."

"I don't know what to do."

"I think you should go to the press." Xavier responded. "Let them know what the Senate has done. Maybe if we can get enough public support against the act they might think twice about possibly overriding the veto."

"I'll do that. The President also wants me to make a speech to congress after he vetos the bill. You and the others can watch it on C-SPAN."

"We'll be watching. I promise."

Hank then exhaled deeply as he got back to his feet and shook Xavier's hand.

"It seems like everytime we meet, I've got nothing but bad news. I'm sorry about that Professor."

"It's alright Henry. I appreciate you always letting me know what's going on."

Nodding, Hank turned away and out of the office to head back to his parked car outside. After he left, Xavier laced his fingers as he brought his hands up to his chin. He stared out the window, deep in thought.

Upstairs in his bedroom Scott finished getting dressed and put his sunglasses on. He sighed when he saw the empty bed. Jean must have slipped out while he was changing. He was worried about her and wanted to talk to her about what happened last night back at that warehouse. He opened the door and stepped out in the hall but before starting to look for her he decided to check on Ororo first.

"Ororo?" He said out loud while lightly knocking on the door.

"Come in."

He opened the door and saw her in bed with the television on. Ororo took the remote and lowered the volume when Scott walked in.

"Hey."

"How are you feeling?" Scott asked as he approached the bed, looking her over, seeing the bruises on her face.

"I'll live." She responded. "It was Toad that did this."

"Toad? From Liberty Island?"

"Apparently he wants revenge for me frying him."

"I thought he was dead."

"So did I."

They were quiet for a few moments after she said, Scott just stared at the television, some woman's talk show before admitting why he really came her to talk about.

"I'm worried about Jean."

Ororo nodded.

"I know you are."

"The way she was last night...that's just not her. That's not the Jean I know. She was out of control, she never would have done something like that before, no matter who it was that we were fighting."

"Jean was always so careful with her powers, so hesistate. Maybe now she finally has the confidence the rest of us have."

"I just don't want her to get hurt." Scott responded. "I need to talk with the Professor about it. He needs to start teaching her again like he promised he would do."

"Erik's death has taken a lot out of him."

"I know, but he still has a school to run and staff to look out for. Jean needs help or she's going to end up doing something..."

He trailed off as Ororo looked up at him. Scott the shook his head.

"I don't know. She's just scaring me. It's like the Professor taught us...power corrupts."

"And absolute powers corrupts absolutely." Ororo finished.

"Yeah. I never thought I'd say that about Jean, but after last night-"

"She'll be alright, Scott." She interrupted, trying to comfort him. "She'll be able to manage the power she has, trust me."

He smiled a little before reaching out a squeezing her hand.

"Get some rest."

She nodded and Scott turned away. As soon as he walked out in the hallway and closed the door behind him he was to turn right when he nearly ran into someone just standing there.

It was Jean.

"Jean." Scott smiled. "I wondered where you went."

"I'm fine, Scott." She responded in a hard voice. "You don't have to keep track of every move I make."

"I know."

She then walked around him and headed down the hall as he looked after her. Scott sighed, worried that she might have heard his conversation with Ororo.

Jean kept going until she reached the front doors and went out them, determined to get out of here. She couldn't believe what she had just heard from Scott.

First he accused her of wanting to be with Logan instead of him, now he thought she was out of control.

She continued on, telekinetically pushing the gates open as she walked off the school grounds. Jean then stopped herself as she turned her head and looked back at the mansion.

"I am in control." Jean growled. "I've never been in more control."


	57. Sinister Manipulation

XXXXXX

In the game room of the mansion, Bobby and John were taking turns shooting pool while Warren was sitting on the couch with Kitty when suddenly Logan walked in.

"Are you guys ready?"

"Ready for what?" Warren asked.

"It's Monday. It's time for your Danger Room session."

At that time Peter had walked by and overheard what had been said.

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, Logan." Bobby agreed. "We're all a little banged up. Can't we do it another time?"

Logan thought about for a second before nodding.

"Yeah, alright."

He then walked off with Peter as John looked at his best friend.

"It is just me or does Logan seem more relaxed over the past few days."

Bobby shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess maybe he's finally learned how to calm down."

The two continued their game as Kitty and Warren picked up their conversation.

"I was thinking about what happened over the weekend." Kitty began. "I don't know if I'm going to keep training with you guys."

"What are you talking about?"

"It was scary. I don't know if I'm ready yet."

Warren then took Kitty's hand.

"I know it was bad, but we're all okay. And it was thanks to you. Give yourself some credit, you add a lot to the team."

Kitty smiled just as Bobby nailed two balls into the corner pocket and spoke up to John.

"Speaking of the team, when are you going to start training with us?"

"I'm not." John responded as he circled around the table. "I'm not an X-Man remember?"

"You could be. I think they're going to put Remy on the team."

John then took his shot, knocking two balls into one pocket.

"Well...good for him."

"Do you want to be part of the X-Men?"

"No." John then looked at his friend and shook his head when it looked like he was going to speak again. "Just drop it, Bobby. I'm not doing this now."

Back upstairs, Rogue was walking through the hall and was about to turn the corner when she ran straight into Remy.

"Whoa." Remy smiled as he looked down at who he ran into. "Hello, Chere."

"Remy." Rogue smiled back. "I'm glad I found you. I just wanted to apologize again for what happened-"

"No apology needed. I'm fine."

She nodded.

"Okay."

The two continued looking at each other before Rogue started to walk around him but Remy spoke up again.

"But, if you really feel bad about it you could make it up to me by letting me take you out to dinner tonight."

Rogue slowly looked back at Remy who was now smirking at her.

"How about it?"

A slow smile appeared on her face as she shrugged.

"Why not?"

"Good. I'll see you tonight."

Remy then headed to his room, Rogue watched him the whole way before turning around and heading to the staircase.

However, while this was going on at the mansion at downtown Manhattan, Sinister was standing in Shaw's office along with Emma going over their failure over the weekend.

"So." Sebastian began. "What went wrong?"

"I'll tell you what went wrong." Sinister responded. "We went with Leland's plan. I told you that Jean Grey was too powerful. Now Mikhail and Pierce are dead."

"We've lost members before." Emma spoke. "We'll just replace them."

Sebastian then raised a glass before taking sip of wine.

"Here's to our dead. May they be in a better place."

After taking a drink he looked back at Sinister.

"Now, where do we go from here? How do we get this woman on our side?"

"Wait." Emma said. "You still want her as our Black Queen?"

"Absolutley. If she really is as powerful as Nathaniel discribes imagine what she could do for us."

"But that's just it. If she really this strong than getting her on our side will be impossible."

"Not quite." Sinister smiled. "I locked minds with her the other night. I felt what she felt. Jean Grey may be physically strong, but she is emotionally weak."

He then looked at Emma.

"That's were you come in, my dear."

Sebastian raised an eyebrow.

"What exactly do you have in mind?"

"Her emotions can be used against her. If I can get her alone, Emma can manipulate her emotions, make her fall in love with me. I can then bring her to the club, she won't fight it."

"Are you sure about this?" Emma asked.

"As long as you keep her emotions on check, it will be easy. Then after I'm done with her, your control won't be necessary anyone. After one night with me, she'll never want to leave."

"I'll bet." Sebastian almost laughed. "You're a real ladies man."

"I will work. I promise. But I want something in return."

"What's that?"

Sinister raised his chin as he looked at the other mutant.

"I want to be a member of the Inner Circle. I've been denied my rightful place for for too long."

Emma and Sebastian shared a look before the Black King responded.

"I'll tell you what, if you pull this off...if you bring Jean Grey to us without any complications, you'll have a seat at the table waiting for you. Guaranteed."

A smile appeared on Sinister's face as he smiled. Suddenly, he touched his temple as he sensed a powerful presence.

"What is it?" Emma asked.

"It's her." Sinister said, almost in disbelief. "She's close."

He then looked at Emma.

"Come along, it's our chance."

"Now?"

"Yes, now."

Sinister headed for the door but Sebastian put a hand on his chest, stopping him from heading out. He then gave him a hard look.

"You just make sure nothing happens to my White Queen. Or else you won't be sitting at any table, you'll be laying in a unmarked grave."

"Nothing will happen to her."

After he nodded, Sinister walked around the other man and headed out. Emma then approached Sebastian and smiled up at him. She reached up and licked his neck before giving him a kiss.

Wordlessly, she then walked out of the office and followed Sinister out of the club to where he sensed Jean was at.


	58. Dance with the Devil

XXXXXX

Jimmy's place wasn't a big fancy bar, it was early in the afternoon and there was only two other people here, in the back sitting in a booth but the place served alcohol and that was all Jean needed at the moment. She had a glass of scotch in her hand that she brought up to her lips, taking a sip as she stared up at the television hanging from the ceiling that was broadcasting a news segment.

"President McKenna has vetoed the Mutant Registration Act today." The reporter began. "It now heads back to the members of the House who have promised to override the veto."

It was big news for all mutants out there but she couldn't concentrate on it. Jean could only think about what she had heard Scott discuss with Ororo. She wasn't abusing her powers and she didn't need the Professor's help on how to control it. She was in control of her abilities. It wasn't anything like how she was before Alkali Lake.

She was about to pick up her glass again when she suddenly felt the presence of someone else sitting right next to her.

Slowly turning her head, Jean was now staring at a mutant. She knew he was a mutant instantly from his appearance, his face was purple and his eyes were red. Jean continued to stare at him, mesmerized by his look. She had seen mutants with blue skin and green skin before, but never one with purple.

He continued to gaze at her as the bartender was telepathically frozen in his tracks. Jean didn't break the stare as she got over her initial surprise and leaned forward a little.

"Do you have a problem, pal?" Jean asked.

Sinister smiled.

"No problem. I just couldn't help notice that you looked a little sad. I couldn't let such a beautiful woman sit here like that alone. What's wrong, my dear?"

From the booth she was sitting in, Emma Frost focused her power of empathy as she concentrated on the other woman. Jean then took a deep breath as she smiled. Suddenly she felt so relaxed as she looked back into the other mutant's eyes.

"It's nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah..."

She then shook her head.

"I know this will seem like a line, but I feel like I've seen you somewhere before."

"Maybe we knew each other in another life." Sinister responded. "My name is Nathaniel Essex."

He then held out his hand for her to shake. Just as Jean took Nathaniel's hand, he turned it over and began tracing her lifeline with his finger. Emma continued focusing on Jean's emotions, making her more and more have romantic feelings for the mutant sitting in front of her.

"Nice to meet you."

"You know, I've always loved the color purple." Jean smiled as she watched him continue to trace his finger over her hand.

"Really? You don't think I'm ugly?"

"No." She responded, shocked that he would even ask that. "Why would you even say that?"

Sinister shrugged.

"Most people are afraid of me. Because of the way I look."

"I think you're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

Back at the booth, Emma smiled as she saw that Jean was starting to breath heavily, completely infatuated with Sinister. The plan was working better than she had expected.

"I appreciate that, Jean."

Sinister then slowly unbuttoned his black shirt, revealing more of his purple skin. Jean bit her bottom lip as she reached out and ran her hand from his chest down to his muscular abs. He then gently took both her hands in his.

"Come dance with me."

"There's no music." Jean laughed.

"Does that really matter?"

She continued to smile as Sinister took her hand as they both got up and began slow dancing. Emma watched as she continued playing with Jean's emotions, making her feel nothing but love, affection, and intrigue for the mutant she was dancing with.

"God." Jean breathed as Sinister ran his hand over the side of her neck. "I haven't felt like this…I've never felt like this."

"How would you like to feel like this, every night?" Sinister asked.

"Is that a trick question?"

"Absolutely not."

Sinister ran his hands up the sides of Jean's head before running them through her hair.

"The place where I live, you would be treated like a queen."

"Your place?" Jean responded, now starting to get confused. "But I already have a place of my own."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I don't know."

Sinister grinned and took advantage of her confusion.

"I think you were trying to get away from that place you live. That's why you were upset."

"Yes." Jean agreed.

"You want to escape."

"Yes."

"If that's what you want...here's your chance. You don't want to pass this up."

"I don't." Jean agreed.

Sinister then laced his fingers through hers.

"Come with me. I'll give you everything that you desire. Everything that you need."

Jean's eyes gazed over and Sinister smiled at her before wrapping his arm around her arm and leading her out of the bar. They began walking down the sidewalk together with Emma right behind them. After a few minutes, they reached their destination as they walked up the steps.

"What is this place?" Jean asked.

"The Hellfire Club." Sinister responded as opened up the door for her. After the two stepped in, Jean's eyes wandered around the place looking over the Victorian architect, the fancy furniture, and expensive paintings on the wall.

"Wow." She breathed.

"You like it?"

"I love it."

"Welcome back, Nathanial." Sebastian greeted. "And who is this lovely lady?"

"Jean Grey." She responded.

"Nice to meet you Ms. Grey."

She then felt a hand on her shoulder and saw that Emma was standing right next to her.

"Now, why don't we get you ready?" Emma asked with a smile.

Jean's brows furrowed in confusion.

"Who are you?"

"Emma Frost."

"What are we getting ready for?" Jean then asked, looking back at Sinister.

Feeling like Jean might overcome what she was doing, Emma used more power, continuing to manipulate her emotions. Jean then closed her eyes as she felt like she had just stepped into a hot bath. Madelyne then walked over towards her.

"The ceremony of course." She spoke. "You want to look your best for Nathaniel, don't you?"

She opened up her eyes and gazed back over at Sinister.

"Of course I do."

"Then let us help you." Emma responded as she and Madelyne led her to a nearby room for her to change.

When they were out of sight, Sebastian and Sinister looked at each other.

"It all went perfectly. We should have just went with my plan from the beginning."

Leland's eyes then lowered to the floor after Sinister said that, remembering his failure.

"I'm impressed." Sebastian responded. "It looks like that you'll be apart of the Inner Circle after all. And we will all be getting a new Black Queen."


	59. The Black Queen

XXXXXX

Twenty minutes had gone by as the Hellfire Club got ready for a wedding ceremony. An alter was set up as Sebastian was dressed in a green robe as he was going to act as the minister presiding over the ceremony.

Sinister stood on the right dressed in a tuxedo with Leland standing behind him. Chairs had been set up as clubs regulars sat down along side the club's soldiers. Toad was sitting in the audience as well.

After a few more minutes of waiting, Emma and Madelyne slowly led Jean down the isle. She was wearing a black dress with a black cape and black boots. Her red hair was being held in a bun as Emma smiled as she continued to keep the other woman's emotions under her control. It continued to amaze her as to how easy this was.

Given her far advanced telepathy, Emma thought for sure that Jean would overcome her empathy control but she hadn't. Sinister was right, she was physically strong but emotionally weak. Probably one of the weakest she had ever encountered.

As Jean was continuing to let herself be led to the altar and he waiting husband to be she smiled at him. Just like back at the bar, Nathanial's beauty took her breath away. Now standing next to each other, Sinister smiled back as the ceremony began.

"Dearly beloved." Sebastian started. "We are gathered together in the face of this congregation, to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony."

It took all of Jean's strength of will to just stand there and listen to the service when she would rather be in Nathaniel's arms. She then focused on Sebastian as he continued.

"Wilt thou, Nathaniel have this woman to be thy wedded wife? Wilt thou love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her in sickness and in health. And, forsaking all others, keep thee only onto her, so long as you both shall live?"

"I do." Sinister smiled.

Sebastian nodded and turned to Jean.

"And wilt you Jean, have this man-"

"Oh yes." Jean interrupted. "Yes."

Smiling, Sinisters' eyes glowed as Sebastian finished the ceremony.

"I now pronounce that they be man and wife. Sir, you may kiss the bride."

"You are mine now, Jean." Sinister said as he took Jean into his arms. "Bound to me till the end of time."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Nathaniel." Jean smiled.

Emma then turned towards the small crowd watching.

"Gentleman, Ladies, of the Hellfire Club. I give you Jean Grey, our new Black Queen. Long may she reign."

The place exploded in cheers but Jean heard none of them as every facet of her being was overwhelmed by a physical and emotional tidal wave. The like of which she had never known. Sinister then gently pulled Jean to him and kissed her deeply.

Slowly wrapping her arm around his neck, Jean put her hand on the back of his neck and deepened the kiss, melting into his embrace, feeling like she was in absolute heaven.

"I've never thought I could love anyone as much as I love you." Jean said once they seperated.

"I love you too, Jean." Sinister smiled. "More than you could ever know."

They continued to hold each other in their arms as they gazed into each others eyes.

"I've never felt like this before." Jean spoke again.

"Imagine how you'll feel after tonight."

XXXXXX

Back at the school, Scott was walking through the hallway trying to find Jean. She had been gone now for hours when suddenly his vision began to blur. He stumbled backwards into the wall as he suddenly saw a imagine in his mind's eye.

_"Tonight you will know how it feels to be treated like a queen." Sinister smiled as he stroked Jean's cheek._

_"Emma refered to me as the Black Queen." Jean responded. "What is that?"_

_"It is a powerful position in this club's Inner Circle. We, us, are a powerful group. You will learn all about it in time."_

_"I'm really interested." Jean said as she took Nathaniel's hand and began to walk through the hall together. "And not just this place, I want to learn all about you."_

"Jean." Scott gasped.

Back in his office, Xavier was on the phone with Hank discussing the whole situation regarding the Registration Act.

"The house is putting off a vote till the following week." Hank began. "It will give me time to prepare my speech. I should be making it this Friday."

"I truly hope they listen to what you have to say, Henry."

"As do I, Professor."

Suddenly, the door of the Professor's office was shoved open as Scott came running in.

"Professor, Jean's in trouble!"

Xavier looked over at him before speaking into the phone.

"Henry, I'll have to call you back."

Once he hung up he turned his attention back to the other man.

"What's happened?"

"I'm not really sure. Get the others down here." Scott directed.

A few minutes later, Logan, Ororo, Kurt, Peter, Warren, and Bobby all joined them in the office. Logan looked around the noticed that they were a couple people short.

"Where's Rogue?" He asked.

"On a date with Remy." Bobby answered.

"And Kitty?"

"She's a little shook up." Warren responded. "I don't think she wants to be a member of the team. Not yet, anyway."

"Alright, we don't have time for this." Scott interrupted, impatiently. "Jean is in trouble."

That got the attention of Logan and Ororo.

"How do you know that?" Logan asked.

"Jean and I share a psychic bond." He answered. "We joined minds after we came back from Liberty Island. A part of her in me, and part of me in her. We did it for this reason. I saw her with some mutant...but he looked like..."

He then shook his head.

"I can't describe it."

"Do you know where she is?" Xavier asked.

"Yes, I can get us to our location. But we have to leave now."

"Alright, let's go." Ororo responded.

"Wait." Kurt spoke up. "You're still hurt, are you sure you can go?"

"Jean's my best friend. She was there for me, I'm there for her."

After that, they all turned and ran from the office and began heading down to the mansion sub-complex. Along the way Logan grabbed Scott's arm to stop him.

"Logan, what the-"

"You lead us this time." He began. "The Professor put me in charge, but it's your girlfriend out there this time, so you call the shots."

Scott was in shock at what the other man and just said to him and he nodded in return.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

Back in the mansion, John was laying on his bed flipping his lighter open and closed when he heard a familar sound. The jet was raising out of the basketball court.

He got to his feet and looked out the window as he watched the jet raise into the air and finally take off.

Directing the fire into the palm of his hand, John formed it into a small fireball and watched it for a few seconds before closing his hand, extinguishing it.


	60. The X Men vs The Hellfire Club

XXXXXX

After landing the jet on another building not to far from here, Scott led the group to a large building that read 'The Hellfire Club' and sensed that Jean was inside somewhere. But, before he could grab the door handle Warren stopped him.

"What are you doing?"

"Wait. Is this where Jean is?"

"Yeah. She's inside."

"We can't go in there like this." Warren said as he looked himself and everyone else over.

"What are you talking about?" Logan responded.

"I've heard about this club. It's a fancy place, we can't just-"

"I don't give a damn!" Scott then yelled. "Jean is in here, we have to-"

"Listen to me." Warren insisted. "I've heard things about this place, bad things. If we go in there like this we're going to be attacked and outnumbered. We have to blend in."

"What do you suggest?" Ororo asked.

Warren then looked across the street at a place called 'Bergdorf Goodman' knowing that it sold fancy suits and dresses and nodded towards it.

"I hate to say it but Logan and Kurt aren't going to pass if they go in. You two should try to find another way. The four of us need to get some better clothes."

"I can't afford that place." Bobby said while looking at the store Warren was eyeing but the blonde teen smiled in return.

"It's on me. Come on."

"Alright." Scott spoke. "Logan, Kurt try to find a back way in. We'll be inside in about ten minutes."

The group separated as Scott, Ororo, Bobby, and Warren went across the street while Logan and Kurt headed around back.

Inside the club, people were mingling with each other while drinking. Is was just another normal party the Hellfire Club through. However, while Sebastian was talking with a guest, Sinister suddenly appeared and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Nathaniel?" Sebastian almost laughed. "Shouldn't you be upstairs with your bride?"

"They're here." Sinister responded in a serious tone.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow.

"The X-Men?"

"Yes. They're planning a way inside as we speak."

"Well, I expected it. And they're wasting their time. I'll alert the others."

The two of them then headed off in seperate directions.

BAMF!

Nightcrawler teleported himself and Wolverine inside and when they looked around at where they were they knew it had to be the basement. It was cold and damp down here and there were boxes everywhere.

"We're in Logan." Nightcrawler began. "So far so good."

Wolverine nodded and moved forward but suddenly a green substance was spit into his eyes causing to yell out in pain as it burned. He tumbled backwards into a pile of boxes as Nightcrawler went to his aid.

"Logan!"

Suddenly, a long tongue came down from the ceiling and wrapped around Nightcrawler's neck. It lifted him up and threw him backwards causing him to crash against a pipe. Toad then jumped down on top of him, crushing his chest with his feet.

"Looks like we have intruders." Toad smirked.

Nightcrawler teleported then wrapped his legs around Toad's head. Throwing himself backwards, he launced Toad head-over-heels right against the wall. He landed hard but got right back up and and threw a roundhouse kick to Nightcrawler's head with knocked him back down.

Toad tried to follow up but was hit with a punch before Nightcrawler teleported and nailed him with another punch to the other side of his face.

"Stay still." Toad growled.

Flinging out his tongue again, it wrapped around Nightcrawler's ankle and lifted right up. His chest collided with the ceiling before being thrown down again to the ground. Toad launched himself up in the air and was about to bring his knee down upon Nightcrawler.

Nightcrawler moved and then came back with a drop kick to Toad's back. He then nailed him with another punch before Toad tackled him to the ground.

BAMF!

He teleported himself again with Toad in his grasp. He teleported him inside the wall...literally. Nightcrawler gasped for breath as he looked at the imprint of Toad's body in the wall before running over to help Wolverine.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Wolverine said as he wipped the remaining spit from his eyes. "What happened?"

Meanwhile, the rest of the team was heading back over to the club dressed much nicer now. Colossus and Iceman had black suits on, Angel's was silver, Cyclops' was tan, while Storm had a black dress on with white lining.

"Now remember." Angel began. "Be casual."

He opened the door and they all stepped in. The place certainly was fancy and as Angel had predicted all the guests were dressed very nice.

"Where do we start?" Colossus asked.

"Why don't you two start by the bar." Cyclops said while looking at Iceman and Angel. "I'll go ahead."

Cyclops walked away from the group heading right while the two younger mutants did what he had directed.

"Come on, Peter." Storm said. "Let's go this way."

The two walked passed the guest, smiling and greeting them as they tried to blend in. They kept going until they finally came across a long staircase that would take them up to the second floor.

"Should we see where it leads?" Storm asked.

"Might as well. I'll go up first."

Colossus led the way as he climbed up the steps. They kept going until they reached the top but just then a man appeared out of no where and smiled when he saw them.

"Greetings X-Men." Sebastian smiled.

"Where's Jean?"

"Don't worry about her. I am the Black King of this organization and I advise you to surrender now…or you will be hurt."

"By whom, little man?" Colossus laughed. "By you?"

Colossus then launched himself forward and nailed Sebastian with a right hook but it did absolutely nothing. He stared at the other man in shock before Sebastian retaliated with by nailing Colossus with a shot of his own that send him flying backwards, crashing through an end table.

He then grabbed his leg and swung him around before throwing him straight into the wall. But before he could do anything else, Storm used her powers to fly towards him and began covering him with snow.

Sebastian shivered as the snow hit his skin as he turned around and was met with a front kick to the face. She flu around him and went for another but Sebastian jumped up, grabbing her ankle and dragging her down to the floor.

"I told you that if you yielded to me that I would be merciful." He began as he grabbed Storm's hair and pulled her up. "But you resisted. Now, you will pay the price."

He then slammed his fist into Storm's face, knocking her clean out. Sebastian then smiled as he flexed his fist.

"It's been a long time since I exercised my mutant ability. I'd forgotten how good it feels." He muttered as he dragged Storm's cape behind him to one of the rooms.

Back downstairs, Iceman and Angel were sitting by the bar watching the crowd of people waiting for their leaders next move when a female voice suddenly got their attention.

"Dreamy, aren't they?"

The turned their heads to see two young and very attractive females coming towards them. One was blonde with a white dress with the other was a brunette with a black dress.

"Don't you think so, Madelyne?" Emma asked as she focued her powers of empathy on the two of them, making them instantly attracted to them.

"Absolutely." Madelyne smiled as she touched Angel's shoulder. "What are you two doing here alone? You can't possibly be single."

"Actually we are." Angel replied as his eyes gazed over, like he was in a trance.

"Oh, well that's only good news for us." Emma laughed as she ran the black over her gloved hand down Iceman's cheek, making him smile. "What brings you here anyway?"

"Here?" Iceman asked as he looked around. "I...I don't know."

Emma laughed again.

"I have an idea. Why don't we go upstairs."

"Yes." Angel immediately agreed.

"Down boy." Madelyne said as she look his hand. "Follow us."

Emma took Iceman's hand as well and they led both of them through the crowd to the nearest staircase.

In on the upstairs rooms, Sebastian and Sinister were both handcuffing Storm and Colossus to shakles that were in the wall. Jean watched what they were doing in confussion.

"Nathaniel, what's going on?" Jean asked.

"These people are here to take you away from me." Sinister responded.

Jean's eyes darkened after he said that.

"They will never get away with that."

"That's right. They won't, my queen."

Suddenly the door opened and Emma and Madelyne entered the room with Iceman and Angel right behind them, the two men were like puppy dogs under Emma's command.

"Why don't you strap yourselfs in these?" Emma suggested as she pointed to the shakles.

Iceman nodded as he walked over to the shakles. He placed them over Angel's wrists, cuffing him behind his back before Madelyne placed his on.

"Well, this was easy."

Emma then broke the hold she had on them and Iceman and Angel both seemed to wake up and realized their surrondings. They were cuffed behind their back and Storm and Colossus were both on the ground right next to them, cuffed as well.

"What the hells going on?" Iceman demanded but that only earned him a slap in return by Emma.

"Shut up."

She then looked towards Sinister.

"Is that all of them?"

"I sense two more in the basement."


	61. The X Men vs The Hellfire Club II

XXXXXX

After being told that by Sinister, Emma summoned about a dozen of the Hellfire Club's soldiers to the room, telling them that they're were two mutants down in the basement that needed to be eliminated.

"You all are paid a hundred grand a year for your services." Emma began. "It's time to prove that you're worth the money."

"Another thing." Sebastian spoke. "Don't disturb any of the guests. Take the west staircase down so they won't see you."

The soldiers did what they were told as they exited the room and headed down the stairs. But right then, Cyclops had discovered the staircase as well and was about to go up them when he heard the sound of multiple footsteps coming down.

He quickly hid behind a large potted plant before carefully peaking up to see a group of men with tan masks and black hoods running by with some kind of weapon in their hands. Once he was sure they were all gone Cyclops continued back up the staircase.

Back down in the basement, Wolverine and Nightcrawler still continued to wait for one of their team members to come get them but it been quite a while and they were starting to get worried.

"Where are they?" Nightcrawler spoke. "Why haven't they come got us yet?"

"I don't know." Wolverine responded. "I'm giving it another five minutes before I just head up. I don't give a damn if I don't blend in with the guests or not."

Just then, the door was kicked open and the soldiers all began filing down the steps. The two mutants heard the commotion as Nightcrawler teleported himself and Wolverine to the ceiling as the group of men began searching around.

"I don't see anything." One said after a minute.

"Neither do I." Another responded. "Just keep looking."

Wolverine looked down as his claws unearthed to keep him stuck to the ceiling. He continued to wait until a small group of them were below him. Finally, at the right moment he dropped down on top of them.

"Holy shit!"

The soldiers reacted with deadly speed but it wasn't enough to save them. Wolverine sliced through the mid-section of one of them before stabbing the other two in the chest.

Another soldier saw what had just happened and began firing his weapon at Wolverine but he just used the body of the man he had just killed as a human shield so he wouldn't be hit.

BAMF

Teleporting down, Nightcrawler took him out with a roundhouse kick before leveling another with a punch. Wolverine uppercutted another, knocking him clean out before gutting two more.

Nightcrawler hit one with a hurricanrana, sending him crashing against another soldiers before nailing him with a straight punch. Now, only one soldier was left standing. He looked around in panic before dropping his weapon.

"I surrender." He said while holding up his hands.

"Smart move." Wolverine responded.

He then lunged forward and grabbed him by his collar, lifting bodily off his feet.

"What are you doing?" The soldier yelled. "I gave up! Please don'!"

"Cool it, bub." Wolverine snarled. "I ain't gonna hurt you, provided you tell me all about what's happening upstairs."

Back up in the room where the X-Men were being held captive, Storm and Colossus were finally coming to. Storm looked around as she gazed up at Iceman and Angel.

"Where are we? What happened?"

"We're still in the club." Angel answered. "In a room upstairs."

Colossus realized his hands were shackled behind his back. He tried to break them but he was too close to the wall and couldn't build up much power. Storm then looked across the room and saw Jean standing with Sinister, staring down at the fireplace.

"Jean, help us!"

She then turned around and gave her a sad smile.

"I can't help you Storm." Jean responded. "I can't let you take me away from Nathaniel. I love him."

"That's right." Sinister spoke as put a hand on her shoulder. "Just ignore them. They won't be around for much longer."

He then gently pulled her too him and kissed her deeply as the rest of the X-Men watched in shock.

"I don't understand." Colossus muttered.

"What have they done to her?" Iceman asked.

Out in the hall, Cyclops was standing by the door and was listening to everything. He put his hand on the doorknob and was about to enter, shooting and optic beam at everyone in sight when suddenly Henry Leland appeared behind him and shocked him with a cattle-prod.

Cyclops yelled out in pain as he dropped to the ground. Ten thousand volts of electricity was going through his body as Leland bent down and grabbed the back of his suit before throwing him through the door and inside the room.

Everyone inside looked over at the sudden noise.

"What is this?" Madelyne asked as Cyclops was thrown to the floor and then zapped a few more times.

"Scott!" Storm yelled.

"I thought you said there were only two more in the basement!" Sebastian yelled at Sinister.

"I didn't pick up on him." Sinister responded as he looked down at him.

"Scott." Jean muttered as she looked down at him.

"Jean remember!" Storm yelled again. "That's the man you love!"

"Shut the hell up!" Emma said as she backhanded the other woman across the face.

"Nathaniel...what is this?" Jean asked.

Sebastian looked on in worry, hoping that Jean wouldn't be able to overcome Emma's control of her emotions. Sinister then took her hand.

"It's nothing my dear. I told you alright, these people want to take you away from me."

"Nathaniel, just finish this now." Sebastian growled.

Sinister nodded before grabbing Cyclops and forcing him over so that he was laying on his back. His sunglasses flew off but before he could sent up a beam, Sinister locked eyes with him and said;

"Choke yourself."

Back downstairs, Wolverine and Nightcrawler crept behind the wall before Wolverine slowly looked around the corner to see a bunch of guests, all dressed well talking, drinking, and dancing. Angel wasn't kidding when he said that he and Kurt would never blend in.

There was no stair way in this hall. The only way the two of them were gonna get upstairs is by cutting straight across this dance floor, and they weren't gonna be able to do it without making a fuss.

"Alright, Kurt. Let's get ready to move."

But the sound of a gun being cocked made him stay put. A guard, not dressed in any kind of get-up was now standing right beside Wolverine with a gun pointed at his head.

"Hands on your head fella, nice a slow." The guard spoke.

Wolverine slowly lifted up his hands before quickly grabbing the guard's wrist, breaking it before nailing him with a right hook.

"The hell with it, let's go."

Wolverine and Nightcrawler ran around the corner and across the room. The guests began to scream and panic at the sight of them.

"Keep calm, folks." Wolverine said. "Just stay out of the way and you won't get hurt!"

"Back everyone, back!" One man yelled. "Let security handle this!"

More security came at them but Wolverine merely tossed them aside as he and Nightcrawler continued on until they reached a staircase.

Inside the room, Cyclops was turning red as his hands were wrapped tight around his throat. He was choking the life out of himself.

"Jean, do something!" Storm cried.

"Ignore them, Jean." Sebastian spoke. "It will all be over in a minute."

Wolverine and Nightcrawler then reached the room. They looked inside and saw Cyclops on the ground, a mutant standing over him.

BAMF

Teleporting inside, Nightcrawler drop-kicked Sinister, knocking him off balance and sending him crashing through a mirror. That caused him to break his hold on Cyclops, who quickly released himself from his own grip and began gasping for air.

"Logan, help us!"

The fight was now on.


	62. Unleashed

XXXXXX

He saw that state of the rest of the team but before Wolverine could help them out, Madelyne turned herself into a white tiger and pounced on him. Once they landed, the tiger began to maul Wolverine, who yelled and struggled under the animal, trying to stab it but couldn't get his arms up.

As Cyclops regained his breath, he rolled over and sent an optic blast at the chains in the wall, knocking all the X-Men free. Instead of staying behind to fight, Leland ran from the room and down the staircase. Downstairs, all the guests had already fled the club.

When he saw that the X-Men were now loose, Sinister quickly took Jean's hand and lead her to the staircase that would take them to the roof.

"Hurry, my queen!"

Now that he was free, Colossus metaled up and quickly ran over to Wolverine, nailing the tiger in the head with a punch that knocked it out instantly. The tiger slumbed to the side and it disappeared, Madelyne was now laying in the place of the animal.

Cyclops then fired another optic blast, hitting Emma in the chest which sent her crashing against the wall, knocking her out.

"Emma!" Sebastian shouted.

Nightcrawler came at him but Sebastian grabbed him and threw him backwards, making him crash right into Storm.

Back on the roof, Sinister and Jean were both running towards the helicopter when suddenly Jean let out a gasp as she put a hand up to her temple. Sinister turned around and looked at her.

"Jean, what is it?"

But she didn't respond.

Storm, Iceman, and Angel had all gotten there shakles off but by this time an enraged Sebastian and grabbed a ray gun, the same weapons the Hellfire Club soldiers carried and began firing at the X-Men.

Angel extended his wings and tried to fly out of the way but it was too late. Two blasts hit each one of his wings. He let out a yell and crashed to the ground.

"Warren!" Storm yelled.

Before Sebastian could fire at them again, Cyclops fired at the ground beneath the other mutant, sending him crashing through the floor, all the way to the ground below.

"Where's Jean?" Cyclops asked as he looked around.

"I don't know." Wolverine muttered as Nightcrawler helped him up. By this time, the marks on his face and chest from bites and claw marks were starting to heal.

Up on the roof, Sinister carefully approached Jean. But he didn't like the way she was now looking at him. Her eyes looked dark and she was giving him an evil look. No longer did she look infatuated with him, like she loved him. She was now giving him a look of pure hate.

"Jean...what is it?" He asked.

She then snarled and at that moment Sinister knew what must have happened. Emma's hold on her emotions had been broken.

"You!"

Jean sent a blast of energy at Sinister in the form of a claw that grabbed him around his front and slammed him up against the helicopter.

"Do you have an idea what you have done?" She yelled.

"Jean, please!"

"You came to me when I was vulnerable. You filled the emotional void within me, you made me trust you…perhaps even love you. And all the while, you were using me!"

Sinister struggled in the grasp of the claw, the whole time he could feel his very life essence begin to leave his body.

"Jean." He gasped. "I beg you…you're killing me."

"I intend to do a lot worst than that, Nathaniel. But first, I want to know how you made me have feelings for you. You're only a telepath, how did you do it!"

"Emma, is an empath." Sinister responded. "She controlled your emotions…made you fall in love with me."

"Why?"

"The Inner Circle wanted your power. They wanted you to be apart of our group."

"Through me, you sought power?"

"Yes."

"Very well, then. I'll grant your wish." Jean smiled evilly. "I'll give you power, Nathaniel. Such as no living being has even dreamed of."

"No."

She approached him and put her hand on his forehead. Jean's touch, his mind expands at the speed of thought, racing instantly from one side of reality to the other, through al the infinite reaches of space and time.

Sinister opened his mouth to scream but nothing came out. His body slumped against the ground, lifeless.

"Enjoy your trip, Nathaniel. You won't be coming back."

Jean then looked up toward the sky as it was now getting dark out. Her eyes turned orange as her body began to glow. Her rage began to embody itself in the form a firebird. The wings of the bird extended and Jean took off into the air just as Cyclops and Storm busted through the door of the roof.

"Jean!" Cyclops yelled.

The two them looked out in amazement at what they saw. A giant bird, a phoenix made out of fire and energy flying high over the other building, brightening up the night sky.

"Was that her?" Storm asked in disbelief.

"I think so. We have to get back to the mansion."

Soon, they were joined on the roof by Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Iceman, and Colossus who was carrying Angel in his arms.

"How is he?" Iceman asked.

"I don't know." Colossus responded. "But his wings look bad, we need to get him back."

Nightcrawler then proceeded to teleport them all one by one to wear the X-Jet was waiting for them.

Back downstairs, Sebastian was recovering from falling through the floor when Leland ran over to him.

"Shaw!" He yelled. "We're beaten, man. We're beaten."

"I know." He answered as he brushed plaster off himself.

"How can you be so calm? The club is lost."

Sebastian spun around and grabbed Leland by the collar.

"The club is not lost! We've lost battles before. We'll rebuild, learn from tonight's mistakes."

He then shook his head.

"We need to get Emma and Madelyne, then get out of here. Back to our Headquarters in London."

The two men headed back upstairs and grabbed Emma and Madelyne's unconscious bodies before taking them up to the roof as the sound of police sirens pulling up to the building could be heard.

Sebastian eyed Sinister's dead body for a moment before pilling into the helicopter and starting it up. The helicopter lifted up into the air just as the cops kicked the front door open and began raiding the Hellfire Club.


	63. Broken Wings

XXXXXX

After parking the car he stole back into the garage of the mansion, Remy opened the door for Rogue who stepped out and smiled at him. She was glad she accepted his invitation for dinner, as for the first time in quite a while she had a good time.

"Thank you you dinner, Remy." Rogue said.

"Your welcome, chere." Remy smiled as he walked with her back inside. "I hope you had a good time."

"I did, I really did."

They stepped through the door and walked down the hall of the mansion's subcomplex. As Rogue looked ahead, her brows furrowed as she saw John standing outside the infrimary, flicking his lighter open and closed. When he saw them a look of displeasure came across his face.

"Well, look who it is." He sarcastically greeted. "Did you two have a nice time on your date?"

Rogue was a little taken aback by his words.

"It wasn't a date, John."

Remy looked at her for a moment, surprised by her statement before looking at the pyromaniac.

"What's it to you, anyway?"

"While you were out on the town, you're teammates were in trouble. Now, Warren is hurt and Jean is missing."

"Is Warren okay?" Rogue asked.

"He'll live, but they could have used your help out there."

"Hey, what did you do to help them?" Remy shot back.

John glared at him.

"I'm not apart of the team."

"Well, neither am I. Helping them out once doesn't make me an X-Man."

"Come on you two." Rogue said, trying to cool things down. "Get a grip."

Staring at Rogue for a moment before giving Remy a dirty look, John turned away and headed down the hallway before disapearing.

"What the hell is his problem?" Remy spoke.

Rogue sighed but didn't respond. She had a pretty good idea why he was so upset, and it had nothing to do with not being around to help out the team.

Back in the infirmary, Warren was laying on one of the beds while Kitty sat in a chair next to it waiting for him to wake up. Finally, she heard a groan causing her to jump up to her feet and stand over him. Warren slowly opened his eyes and saw his girlfriends face.

"Kitty?" He asked.

Kitty bit her lip as she brushed away a tear.

"What happened?"

"You got hurt back at the Hellfire Club." She answered, not wanting to give him the news but she had no choice.

"Well...I'm alright. I feel alright...my back hurts a little, but-"

"Warren." She then look a deep breath. "Ororo told me that your wings were damaged in the fight. She said that your not going to be able to fly again."

Warren stared up at her for a moment before slowly closing his eyes as he remembered his wings getting shot. He then opened his eyes back again and stared up at the ceiling.

"Is was that bad?" He asked himself. "I can't fly anymore?"

Kitty then started to cry as she buried her face on Warren's shoulder as he just stared up at the ceiling...he had no reaction, no feeling at all. He was numb.

His mother was dead, his father was dead, and now he couldn't fly anymore. He had nothing left...accept for the Worthington Industries, the CEO job his father wanted him to take when he stepped down.

He gently pushed Kitty off of him as he sat up in the bed and swung his legs over the side.

"Warren, you should probably stay in bed." Kitty began as she wipped away remaining tears but he ignored her.

"Hey." Then said a voice and Kitty looked over to see Bobby standing in the doorway. "Are you okay, Warren?"

"I'm fine." He growled as he got to his feet.

"You shouldn't be up right now, you need to stay here-"

"I'm not staying here." He then snapped. "I'm leaving this damn place."

"What?" Kitty asked as she went over to him. "What are you talking about?"

"I can't use my powers anymore, what's the point of staying here? The only thing I have left is my fathers company."

"Warren, please. I know you're upset but-"

She tried to touch him but Warren grabbed her wrist and pushed her against the wall.

"Hey!" Bobby shouted. He then pulled Warren away from her. "I know you're mad, but don't do that."

Warren glared at him for a moment before turning away and headed out of the infirmary and up to his room to pack. He was leaving.

The others in the meantime were busying fixing up Cerebro so the Professor could use it to find Jean. As soon as Logan walked out with a couple of tools in hand, confirming to everyone that it was fixed, Xavier entered as the doors closed behind him. He slowly took the headset in his hands and stared down at it.

He swore to himself that he would never use Cerebro again, after what Striker and then Erik had nearly made him do, but he didn't have a choice this time around. Xavier placed the headset on and began to concentrate.

As he focused on Jean, he finally saw her in his minds eye approaching her childhood house. Colors of energy began to swirl around her as she telekinetically constructs herself a new outfit…a deep red dress and overcoat.

Jean then pushed open the front door of her house and walked to the living room. Taking a seat in the darkened room, she looked over at the light and it turned on as she simply sat. Things then began to float and act on their own accord.

Xavier then opened his eyes as he took off the headset. He then took a deep breath, knowing it might be too late.

Scott, Ororo, and Logan were all waiting on the outside when the doors finally opened and Xavier rolled out.

"Did you find her?" Scott asked.

"Yes, she's back at her old house."

"Where's that?" Logan asked.

"Annandale on Hudson." Scott answered. "It's where Jean lived before she came here. But why did she go there? Her parents are dead."

"I don't know, but we need to get there."

The four of them then went to the garage and got into a van. It was about an hour drive before they arrived in the neighborhood, Xavier told Logan to park across the street. Once they were all out, they stared at the house that Jean was currently inside.

"You all wait here." Xavier spoke.

"What?" Scott responded.

"I need to do this alone."

"Professor, I-"

"Please, Scott. I'm the only one can help her at this point."

Scott didn't repond as he reluctantly stood back with Logan and Ororo as Xavier wheeled his way past the gates and up to the front door.


	64. Dark Phoenix's Tragedy

XXXXXX

Slowly pushing open the front door, the Professor headed in while Scott, Ororo, and Logan stood back and waited. The inside of the house was darkly lit, objects were moving and acting on their own accord, resulting in random noises all about. It was unsettling at best. Finally, Xavier reached the living room where Jean was sitting. Several pieces of furniture that were floating in the air suddenly slammed down to the floor as Jean continued watching Xavier with unblinking eyes as he wheeled closer in before coming to a stop.

"I knew you'd come." Jean said.

"Of course." Xavier smiled. "I've come to bring you home."

"I have no home."

"Yes you do. You have a home and a family. You're just confused right now, the Hellfire Club was using you-"

"You are using me, everyone is using me!" Jean snapped.

"That's not true."

"It is true. You want to control me."

"No…I want to help you."

"Help me? What's wrong with me?"

Xavier sighed heavily.

"I believe your powers have gotten to be too great for you to control. I should have tried helping you sooner…but after Erik's death-"

"I am in control." Jean responded. "I don't need help. My control is better then you give me credit for, you've always held me back."

"For your own good, Jean."

A lamp suddenly was sent across the room and smashed against the wall.

"Stay out of my head." Jean growled.

Outside the house, the front gate closes on its own. Cars around the neighborhood begin shaking.

"I'm going in." Scot said as he took a step forward but Ororo grabbed his arm and shook her head.

"The Professor said he'd handle it."

Back inside the house, the living room doors slammed shut as the couch began to levitate up to the ceiling. The Professor then wheeled himself closer to Jean.

"Look at me Jean! I can help you, look at me!"

Jean looked up at him.

"Stay out of my head."

Xavier's chair gets pushed back a little but the breaks hold them in place.

"You must trust me, you're a danger to everyone and yourself. But I can help you!"

"I'm fine." Jean responded. "I'm just sick of this. I'm sick of the fighting, sick of the conflict between humans and mutants, sick of always putting my life in danger, and the lives of everyone that I care about!"

"As am I, Jean." Xavier tried to reason.

"But you don't have a clue of how to fix it. You could have! You could have stopped everything yourself if you just had the guts!"

"It would have been wrong for me to do so, Jean. We are not gods, we can not take away people's free will."

"Of course we can. And it will only only change things for the better. Look what I did for Logan. He used to be reckless and dangerous until I stepped in! I tamed him! Just imagine what I can do for everyone else!"

"Jean, listen to yourself!" Xavier yelled. "This isn't you! Your powers have corrupted you!"

Jean's eyes then began to turn black.

"I don't need a lecture! I've heard it too many times before!"

She then snapped, shattering all the windows in the house and sending Xavier flying backwards in his chair.

They all heard the noise from the outside and Scott began to run towards the house but something stopped him and then threw him backwards with such a force that he crashed right through a parked car's windshield.

"Scott!" Ororo yelled and she and Logan ran to him.

Back inside the study, telekinetic winds surrounded Jean and Xavier as the two locked minds and the battle of the two most powerful mutants on the planet took place.

"I can help you." Xavier said to Jean, telepathically.

"Leave me alone Charles. I won't let you do this to me again." Jean telepathically responded.

"Jean! Let me in!" Xavier yelled, out loud.

"You're just making it worse."

The faucet in the kitchen then exploded, sending water spraying towards the ceiling telekinetically. All the cars in the neighborhood began to raise up into the air as everyone in the other houses began to slowly come outside to look on at what was happening.

"I am power." Jean said.

"You can't control your power." Xavier tried to reason with her. "I can help you."

"I am Phoenix."

After Jean said that, the entire house was ripped from its foundations and began to float high into the air. Pieces of the house began ripping off and began flying away, the front door came off, as did most of the windows. Logan and Ororo looked up at it in shock before Logan looked towards her.

"Get me up there!"

Ororo nodded as her eyes rolled to the back of her head. High winds began to pick up as Ororo flu Logan all the way up towards the house and through where the front door had once been. But as soon as they got into the house, Logan and Ororo both flu upwards to the ceiling. Growling, Logan unearthed his claws and began pull himself towards the living room doors as objects in the house were being thrown everywhere.

Back in the living room, Xavier began to slowly levitate out of his chair.

Logan pulled himself toward the living room. He reaches the door and struggles to force it open. Xavier was now completely suspended in the air, his sink flapping in the strong wind.

Suddenly, time stopped, and it is only Jean and Xavier, everything else frozen. Xavier locks eyes with Jean, now surrounded in a fiery aura, her eyes the black of charcoal. He then spoke;

"Don't let it control you."

Xavier then slowly turned his head to the hole Logan was peaking through.

"No!" Logan yelled.

Despite himself, Xavier smiled at him.

He then disintegrates.

Logan gets thrown as does the remains of Xavier. The house smashes onto the ground as does all the cars. Scott pushed himself up but before he could make a move, the roof of the Grey house exploded as a giant firebird flied upwards to the sky. He, along with everyone else watched with amazement before it disappeared.

Scott then ran towards the house, going through the front door and kept going until he reached the living room. Ororo was now right behind him and when they rushed in, they found only an empty wheelchair.

"No…" Scott muttered to himself as he looked back at Ororo.

Tears came to her eyes as she stared back at him.

"Is he…"

Scott then fell to his knees and began to cry silently to himself, Ororo fell right next to him, embracing him, crying.

Logan just stood in the back, shocked silent.


	65. The Days of the Future Past

XXXXXX

The following morning, the office of Professor Charles Xavier was darkly lit as nothing but an empty wheelchair sat in the room's center. Outside, a monument stood in his honor as all of the students were taking seats that were lined up in rows. It was surreal, not too long ago they were all out here for the memorial for Erik Lehnserrh, now they were attending the one of Charles Xavier.

One person however wasn't attending. Warren had already packed and a limo was waiting for him by the gates. Kitty watched from a window on the second floor as her boyfriend, angry and bitter was driven away from the mansion, she wiped away a tear before going downstairs to join everyone else.

Scott and Ororo sat next to each other, the toll of the Professor's death visible on them. Kurt was sitting next to her, holding her hand. Down another line was Bobby, Rogue, John, Remy, and Peter. Kitty then walked out and sat down next to him. The younger students sat behind them, with many other friends and colleagues. Logan stood off to the side by himself, not taking a seat with the others.

Kitty then sniffled and Bobby took her hand.

Henry McCoy then walked forward, standing in front of the gathering and began to speak.

"We live in an age of darkness." Hank stated. "A world full of hatred and intolerance. But in every age there are those who fight against it."

Ororo's eyes then began to water as Kurt continued to comfort her.

"Charles Xavier was born into a world divided." Hank continued. "And he wanted to change things. Change things for the betterment of mankind. Although he will not live to see the fruit of his labor, his life will make all the difference."

He then made eye contact with each member of the X-Men.

"Charles was more then a leader, more then a teacher. He was a friend. When we were afraid, he gave us strength. When we were alone, he gave us family."

Scott then nodded as he started to think about his early days here as a teenager, back when he first met the Professor.

"Charles may be gone, but his teachings live on through us, and as we go on we must carry out his vision. And that's a vision of a world united. And with that, he will always be with us."

After he finished his speech, Hank bent down and placed a single flower on the ground, before the monument. Logan turned away as everyone else got up and in a single file walked towards the monument and placed a flower down before heading back inside.

Scott and Ororo were the last two that were outside, both just standing in front of the monument, looking at it for a few moments before Ororo finally spoke.

"What are we going to do? How can we go on without him?"

"I know it will be hard, but we'll go on. That's what he would have wanted us to do."

She didn't respond, Ororo turned away and headed back inside like the others had done while Scott looked up at the sky and took a deep breath. He remembered something he had said to the Professor a little while ago, back when he was laying in the infirmary in that catatonic state.

_'You taught me everything I know. If anything should happen...I'll take care of them.'_

Now was the time to step up.

Whether he wanted to or not, whether he was ready or not he had to step in the Professor's place. It was what he promised him he would do, and he was going to keep his promise.

But then another thought crossed his mind. Jean…she was still out there somewhere. All powerful, completely out of control. Where would she turn up next? And what were they going to do to handle it?

Finally heading inside, Scott kept going up the stair until he reached his bedroom, the room he shared with Jean now empty again. It had the same empty and eerily feeling that it had when he arrived back from Alkali Lake. Except this time was different.

Scott then headed over to his dresser drawer and opened it up. He dug through his clothes for a moment before finally coming across it. A small box.

He opened it up and looked down at the engagement ring inside of it. He planned on finally asking Jean to marry him, he was just waiting for the right time.

Sitting down on the bed, Scott then buried his face in his hands as he finally broke down. Jean had come back but now he had lost her all over again, and now with the Professor...as strong as he wanted to be for the team and for the students Scott really didn't know if he could handle this.

Back downstairs in the Professor's office, Hank had turned on the television and was watching the news, waiting for the results from the House's vote to override President McKenna's veto.

He was in mourning, but the situation back inWashingtonwasn't going to pause for anything. Just then, Logan entered the room with a beer in hand as he walked over to where Hank was. The blue mutant looked down at his hand and Logan shrugged.

"I'm getting drunk tonight."

"I may have to join you." Hank responded. "Look."

He turned up the volume on the television and they both listened to what the reporter was saying.

"This morning the house has voted unanimously to override the President's veto of the Mutant Registration Act. The act that would force mutants to reveal themselves and their power to the government."

Logan then looked over at Hank.

"What's going on?"

Hank sighed. He told the Professor what was happening in Washington but wasn't sure just how much the others knew. It was a bad time to tell him, but he had to know."

"President McKenna vetoed the Mutant Registration Act but congress has now overridden it."

Hank then looked Logan in the eye.

"The act is now law."

"What happens now?"

"I don't know. I really don't know."

Meanwhile, far away from the mansion standing on top of Mount Everest itself, Jean was there, her body glowing which protected her from the cold winds and sub-zero temperature. She didn't know what led her here, she had just always wanted to see it and here she was.

Jean was aware of what was happening back home and was determined to fix it, by any means necessary. She would no longer be controlled, not by anyone.

Now, she knew what she had to do.

The form of a firebird then surrounded her as Jean took off into the air, flying to her next destination.

The End.


	66. X6

XXXXXX

_"Since the dawn of existence, there have always been moments when the course of history shifted. Such a moment is upon us now. The conflict between the better and worse angels of our very nature, who's outcome will change our world so greatly, there will be no going back._

_I do not know if victory is possible. I only know that great sacrifice will be required, and because the fate of many will depend on a few, we must make the last stand."_

XXXXXX

Traveling down the street at a steady speed of Annandale on Hudson, a black Rolls Royce approached the Grey household. It pulled up outside and after turning off the engine, Henry McCoy got out of the car and went to the trunk, getting out a wheelchair. He pushed it over to the backseat and opened it, letting Charles Xavier move himself into it.

"Should I wait here, Professor?" Hank asked.

"Yes, if you don't mind Henry. We'll just be a few minutes."

He nodded and got back in the car. As he did Erik Lehnserrh then got out of the backseat as well to join the other man. Both men were younger, more vibrant...and still closest of friends.

"I still don't know why I'm here." Erik complained, although not in a serious way causing Xavier to smile a little. "Couldn't you just make them say yes?"

"Of all people, I would expect you to understand my feelings on the misuse of power." Xavier responded as he wheeled himself up past the gates with Erik up to the front door.

"Ah yes, power corrupts and all that." Erik responded while patting his friends shoulder. "When are you going to stop lecturing me?"

"When you start listening perhaps?"

Erik laughed a little and Xavier then got serious.

"You're here because I need you."

"We're not going to meet everyone of them in person are we?"

"No. This one's special."

After ringing the doorbell, the two waited for a moment before Elaine Grey answered the door.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

"Yes. I'm Charles Xavier and this is my associate Erik Lehnserrh."

"Oh yes." She then opened the door further. "Please, come in."

They all entered the living room and John Grey welcomed them. Erik took a seat on the sofa as Xavier wheeled himself next to him. Elaine and John sat on the couch across from them and John spoke up.

"Do you think you can help her?"

"We need to know when it all started." Xavier began. "But, before anything, be careful with your words. She's listening to everything."

Canvas on the wall rumbles, a flower vase falls from a piece of furniture the ground, shattering. Elaine jumps and becomes more nervous.

"You see? It's like that all the time. And to know that I can't help her is frustrating..." Elaine sighed.

"Usually, these events are triggered by extreme stress."

Erik, in his ever imposing, prideful and softly sarcastic way towards humans then asked;

"Has she received any kind of...mistreatment?"

John noticed the way he speaks, and is not flattered.

"No. Jean is the most precious thing we have in our lives."

"Thing?"

"Erik, please." Xavier sighed.

"Wait...John, it all started when...when her best friend, Annie Richardson died." Elaine revealed.

She looked at Erik and Xavier.

"She was struck by a car. Jean saw the whole thing."

"How is she, right now?" Xavier asked.

"She knows something's wrong. She knows that she's different."

John nodded.

"Jean is a good girl...she has never given us trouble until...this."

"I think she would do fine at our school. Learn to develop her powers more safely." Erik responded. "That is if she's okay with the idea of leaving home?"

"Well, we really haven't told her about it yet."

"May we speak to her?" Xavier asked.

John and Elaine exchange worried glances before Elaine nodded.

John goes to call over his shoulder, but Jean, a young teenage girl already walked into the room. John gets up and gently leads her to the couch.

"Jean, this is Mr. Xavier and Mr. Lehnserrh. They would like to talk to you for a minute."

Jean sat down in between her parents, but in an instant both John and Elaine freeze, becoming living statues. She smirks smugly as she looked at Xavier.

"Hello Jean."

She doesn't respond as she looked from him to Erik.

"It's very rude, you know, to read your parents thoughts, or my own, without our permission." Xavier said to her, telepathically.

Jean now looks confused.

"You were in my head." She finally spoke.

"Just as you were in mine." Xavier now spoke out loud.

"Did you think you were the only one of your kind, young lady?" Erik then asked.

"What kind?"

"We are mutants, Jean. Like you."

"Really? I doubt that."

Outside, all of the cars on the street begin to levitate high into the air. Mr. Lee watched in awe as his hose begins to snake up, the water pouring up into the air, and Mr. Claremont chases after his lawnmower, which has taken on a life of its own. The mailman's bag was pulled away from him and all the envelopes began flying out into the air.

By this time, all the people in the neighborhood had come out of their houses to look on at the phenomenon. Erik was watching the whole thing with a raised eyebrow and a slight smirk before turning back to Xavier.

"Oh, Charles, I like this one."

Xavier however didn't share his friends enthusiasm as he looked back at the teenage girl.

"Jean, you have more power than you can imagine."

Jean however showed no sign of strain or even listening to him as he continued.

"The question is, will you control that power…"

Jean suddenly lost control, and the cars came crashing down all at once.

"…or will you let it control you?"


	67. Speech to the Nation

XXXXXX

In the present day, Henry McCoy adjusted his tie as he stood in front of a podium in front of all the members of congress. Cameras had been set up as the speech he was about to give was going to be aired on C-SPAN. No doubt news outlets across the country would comment on it. Despite giving dozens of speeches in the past, he was nervous about this one as this was probably the most important speech he had ever given.

"Ladies and gentleman of the House and Senate." He finally began. "I think you all know why I'm here. Several days ago, President McKenna's veto of the Mutant Registration Act was overridden and the act has now become law."

He scanned the large room, looked upon all the faces staring at him before continuing.

"This law will require mutants to reveal themselves and their mutation to the government. At first, perhaps it doesn't sound so unreasonable. Registering with the government to be put in a database, letting it be known that you are a mutant and what power you possess. However, the troubling part of this law is what is left out of it."

He then took a breath.

"This act fails to address what will happen to the mutants who register. What happens when they identify their power? Will they be considered dangerous? And if they are considered dangerous what will become of them? That is the question that is not being addressed.

Since the formation of the Department of Mutant Affairs we have seen tremendous improvements in relations between humans and mutants. If this law is not repealed, I fear that everything that has been accomplished will become undone. While some mutants will comply with the law, others will be driven further into hiding their true identities. Others may react violently to the law."

Hank again took a breath as he tried to focus in on the members of congress. Trying to read their facial expressions as decided to wrap things up.

"We mutants are your sons, your daughters, your friends, your next door neighbors. And at the end of the day, we are just as much human as you are. I ask this congress to repeal the Mutant Registration Act, to not further divide us. We all inhabit this small planet, we all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's future…and we are all mortal."

That was all he had to say. Hank looked around the room one last time, hoping that his message got across to them. Hoping that they would do the right thing, but deep down inside he knew that the chances of congress repealing the act was slim at best.

That was now two days ago.

Congress was unwilling to budge on their decision like he had feared and out of protest Hank had resigned from his position as the Secretary of Mutant Affairs. Walking into the office, Bishop watched as Hank cleared out his office.

"Are you sure about this, Hank?"

"I'm sure." Hank responded as he finished putting the last of his things into a box. "I refuse to remain here with the registration act as law. And I'm not about to register like I'm some kind of criminal."

"Shouldn't you speak with President McKenna first?"

"There's nothing he can do."

"If you are leaving than what should the rest of us do?" Bishop asked, referring to himself and the rest of the staff.

"Do what you want. If you want to have my job, it's open to you."

Hank then placed one box on top of another and picked it up, carrying it out of the office and out of the building. Bishop followed him the whole way as they reached his car as he opened the door to the backseat allowing Hank to place the boxes in.

"You know, you're right about some mutants reacting violently to this. I'm afraid that this could start the war we've been trying so hard to avoid."

"I'm aware." Hank responded. "Things are going to get worse, which is why I need to be back where I belong."

Meanwhile, back at the mansion the X-Men had all gathered in what was once Charles Xavier's office. They all looked tired and shook up, all were still reeling from the death of the Professor. They were all quiet for a few moments before Scott spoke up.

"I talked to Hank about a half a hour ago." He began. "He told me he resigned from his position in the President's cabinet out of protest. He's on his way back here. It's a good thing, we need him."

"So, how do we handle all of this?" Bobby asked. "The registration act is law."

"We go about things as usual. That's all we can do."

"The Professor is gone." Kitty then weakly spoke and Scott looked down at the floor.

"And Jean is out there somewhere." Logan finished. "What do we do about her?"

"I don't think that one is too hard." Scott responded. "We find her and bring her home."

"Home?" Ororo asked, almost incredulously. "Scott, I loved her too, but…you have to understand, this isn't Jean we're dealing with anymore."

"Of course it is. Jean's still in there somewhere. And I'm going to find her."

"And how are you going to do that?"

"I don't know. But I'm not giving up on her."

Scott then turned to walk out of the office but Ororo got up and went after him.

"Scott, please listen to me."

He ignored her and kept going as she continued following him.

"She's gone, she's not coming back."

"You don't know that."

"She killed the Professor!" Ororo then yelled, now angry.

Scott stopped walking and closed his eyes.

"That wasn't Jean."

Ororo then walked in front of him.

"Why can't you accept that truth? Why can't you just let her go?"

"Because!" Scott then yelled as he roughly grabbed Ororo by the shoulders. "Because I…"

"You still love her."

Scott then let her go and turned away.

"Jean made her choice." Ororo continued. "And now we have to make ours."

Ororo then turned and walked away before Scott headed up the stairs. Kurt then came out of the office and saw her, knowing that she was upset.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he put a hand on her shoulder.

"No, nothing it alright. What are we going to do without the Professor? Maybe we should just send the kids home."

"No, this is home." Kurt responded.

She then gave him a light smile as he continued.

"I know you feel lost now, but the Professor...he will give us a sign to continue on. That I promise you."


	68. Eve of Destruction

XXXXXX

_Scott and Jean had walked through the garden of the mansion together before sitting down on a bench. It was a nice evening tonight, they had just gotten finished eating dinner. It was a light they needed after __Liberty Island__._

_"Scott, you and I have been together for years." Jean began. "We're both happy in this relationship, right?"_

_"Of course." Scott responded. "Why do you ask?"_

_"Because I want to try something. My telepathy has been stronger since we've gotten back, and I think I can do this."_

_"What?"_

_"I want to create a psychic rapport between us. A bond. The ultimate bond. Ultimate trust. A piece of me in you, a piece of you in me." _

_Scott didn't know how to respond. He then laughed nervously for a second. _

_"Jean…wow."_

_Jean smiled back._

_"I know, it's a lot. It's okay to say no"_

_"Why would I say no?" _

_"Really?"_

_"Yes." Scott smiled._

_Jean then gently put her hands up to his temples. After focusing for a moment, a bit of a rush went through the both of them before she put her hands back down._

_"All done. Feel different?" Jean asked._

_Scott shook his head._

_"I…I can't believe it. It feels—_

_"Wonderful." Jean finished for him._

_He smiled at her before leaning forward to kiss her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and at that moment nothing else mattered but the two of them..._

Standing in the bedroom he shared with Jean, Scott was standing by the nightstand staring down at a picture of the two of them. He felt the same way he did when they came back from Alkali Lake, except this time it was worse. The Professor…their leader, teacher was dead. Jean was responsible for it and she was out there somewhere, and who knows what she was going to do next.

An overwhelming sense of helplessness filled him. He had no idea what to do about Jean and he had no one to go to for guidance. Classes had been suspended indefinitely, he knew the kids were scared. And on top of everything else, the mutant registration act had been passed.

Everything was crumbling down around them.

"Scott."

He turned his head and to his relief saw Hank standing in the doorway. He walked over to the older mutant and hugged him.

"I'm glad to see you."

"I told you I'd be back." Hank responded as he returned the hug.

"Hank, what are we going to do?" He asked as he let him go, knowing that Hank knew what he was talking about.

"We'll do what we have to do. Just lay low, wait this whole thing out."

"We can't just wait." Scott then snapped. "Jean is out there somewhere, out of control. She's capable of anything and who knows what she's going to do next."

"So what do you suggest we do?"

"I don't know. We need the Professor."

"Unfortunately that's not an option. But the school is going to need a new headmaster."

Scott stared at Hank.

"What are you saying?"

"I think you know what I'm saying."

While the two mutants continued talking, elsewhere Jean was flying through the sky in her phoenix form. She had gone to Russia and by this point was flying over the nation's capital of Moscow. It was night time and once she flu over the buildings down below the lights completely went out, the power cutting off down below.

After a few minutes more of flying, Jean finally settled on top of the Spasskaya Clocktower and was gazing upon the lights of the city. By this point, down on the streets below people had seen Jean's glowing form and pointing at her and yelling.

"Get a good look." Jean then said to herself. "Know what I am."

Jean then extended her arms and unleashed a sonic boom across the city as a piercing scream filled the air. Glass shattered from the windows of the buildings and began falling to the ground below. People screamed as they ran for cover but a lot of them weren't so lucky as they were cut into pieces.

By this point the Russian police was coming towards the tower she was standing on in their squad cars. Jean simply waved her hand which sent them flying backwards, crashing against each other before flipping a few times and settling against the ground.

"I'm sorry, but this has to be done."

Using her powers, Jean then created a telekinetic storm on the city. Buildings began disintegrating, poles flu, cars flu. People began to explode into a million tiny pieces as she had done to the Professor.

All of the pieces of the buildings began flying upwards to the sky as fiery wings engulfed Jean, her rage embodying itself in the form a firebird. She glowed like a second sun as she lifted herself off the tower and into the air as the storm got worse.

Suddenly, the Spasskaya Clocktower exploded as millions of pieces of debris began falling down to the ground below. Jean kept flying higher and higher into the air before looking back down at the carnage below, all of the damage she had just caused.

She had killed people, tons of people. But she felt nothing. Jean just kept going to the direction of her next target.

Nothing would stop her, nothing could stop her. She would let no one stand in her way of finally bringing this conflict between humans and mutants to an end...

_Scott and Jean headed back inside the mansion and up to their room to call it a night. After changing into a gown Jean got into bed and looked out at the window before Scott closed the curtains._

_"You got your lesson planned for the kids tomorrow?" Scott asked while he got into bed._

_"Yeah. The professor wants to meet with me and Ororo, I think he has a field trip planned soon."_

_"That should be fun for them."_

_Jean nodded in agreement as she closed her eyes._

_"Good night, Scott."_

_"Good night."_

_However, that night Scott was awakened by the whole bedroom shaking. He jumped awake and looked beside him to see that Jean was having some kind of nightmare. _


	69. Burying the Hatchet

XXXXXX

After his talk with Hank, Scott headed down the stairs in search ofLogan. He had a pretty good idea of where he'd find him and sure enough when he reached the Danger Room he saw him inside. There were no explosions going off, no lasers or missiles as Logan was just training in hand to hand combat. Once he saw that the other mutant was finishing up he slowly walked inside and spoke.

"Logan."

He turned his head and narrowed his eyes slightly when he saw him.

"What do you want?"

"I need to talk to you."

"Go ahead." He sighed.

"Not in here."

"Oh yeah? Why not?"

Scott frowned.

The last time the two of them were in the Danger Room together things didn't go so well. So they headed in to town to a bar and ordered beers. Even with the registration act going into law the two of them looked normal enough to go out into public. Currently sitting at a table in front of each other, they stared at each other for a moment before Scott finally decided to start.

"It seems every time I see you you're always training."

"It's what I'm good at." Logan responded. "Fighting. That's the only thing that can sum up my past. One big fight."

"So you never wanted a normal life?" Scott asked.

"What the hell is that? Cheeseburgers and ball games?"

Scott nodded.

"Yeah."

"We're not exactly normal."

"You can say that again."

Logan then took a sip from his bottle before asking;

"Why don't you just tell me the real reason you want to talk to me."

Tapping his bottle, Scott sighed.

"I made a promise to the Professor. That if anything should happen to him I would take care of everything. And I intend on keeping that promise. I'm going to be the new headmaster of the school."

Logan shrugged.

"Well, good for you. What's it got to do with me?"

"If I'm going to be the new face of the school the kids need to look to me the same way they did the Professor. And to do that I need to be around all the time, I can't go on missions anymore. The team needs a leader…I need you to keep leading the X-Men as you've been doing."

Raising an eyebrow, Logan responded;

"You're okay with me being the leader?"

"We've had our differences." Scott sighed, knowing that was an understatement. "But I can't deny you've done a good job in training the others and that's the most important thing."

"I'll keep doing it for as long as I can." Logan responded. "I'll see this whole thing through. Then…I'm taking off again."

Scott stared at the other mutant, not understanding. He thought that Logan had finally come around, that the school was his home.

"Why? I thought you were apart of this place."

"I am. It's just something I have to do."

"Where will you go?"

"Wherever the road takes me."

"That's pretty vacant."

"It is what it is." Logan shrugged. "You can't tell me staying at the school is your ideal future. But it's either that or you and I better go do something else, bub."

Scott shook his head.

"I don't know how to do anything else."

"Neither do I."

"I don't much want to either."

"Neither do I." The other mutant repeated.

The two of them smirked at each other before Scott took a drink from his bottle. They then both looked to the side where the television was hanging from the wall. It was detailing Hank's resignation from the President's cabinet and more information about the registration act.

With that, and Jean they knew they had a long, hard journey ahead of them. Probably harder than they could imagine. But they would just have to deal with it, like they dealt with everything else in the past.

"You know, ever since I agreed to be leader I haven't had one nightmare about my past." Logan began again. "I use to have them all the time, but now…never."

Scott nodded. To him, that was all the reason Logan should stay at the school but he wasn't going to tell him that. He would never understand Logan, he was just a different guy. But if he felt like he needed to move on, he wasn't going to stop him.

"I have nightmares all the time now." Scott responded.

"You know how to stop them?"

"Yeah, I have a pretty good idea."

Logan then finished up his beer.

"Ready to head back?"

"Yeah. We need to tell the others the news."

The two of them then got up and exited the bar together. They walked down the street, side by side not saying a word as they went along. Scott and Logan had finally buried the hatchet, they were no longer going to fight with each other and compete with each other. They might never truly be friends, they had gone through too much for that. But at that moment something existed between the two of them that wasn't there in the past.

A mutual respect.

When they got back they gathered the rest of the team in the office and Scott spoke up.

"Classes are going to resume tomorrow, as will training. Logan is going to lead the team and I'm going to be the new headmaster."

Hank smiled at him and Scott nodded as the others looked at each other.

"It's what the Professor would have wanted. So make sure to get a good night's sleep."

"Wait a minute." John then spoke, getting everyone's attention. "Why am I here? I'm not apart of this team. I just sleep at this place, that's it."

"Yeah." Remy echoed. "I know I've been on a few missions with you guys but no one ever said I was on the team."

Logan sighed.

"We've lost Warren, and with what's going on out there we're going to need as many able-bodies out there as we can get."

"You two are strong mutants." Hank continued. "So, you should think about it. If you show up for the session tomorrow I'm sure you would be considered officially part of the team."

Logan and Scott looked at each other and nodded before turning away and out of the room. Rogue looked at Remy with pleading look on her face.

"Please, Remy? We could use your help."

Remy looked down at her and smirked.

"Alright, Chere. Because you said please."

John stared at the two of them and then rolled his eyes as Bobby then got the attention of his best friend.

"So how about it? Will you be there?"

"Fine. Whatever."

He then left the room with everyone else as Bobby continued to stare after him before looking back at Rogue and Remy exiting the room, hand in hand.


	70. Unsuccessful Session

XXXXXX

The following day had arrived as Logan and Scott stood in the control room to watch the upcoming session in the Danger Room. Outside in the hall, Storm led the way as Nightcrawler, Iceman, Rogue, Colossus, Shadowcat, Gambit, and Pyro all trailed behind her as they walked one by one inside the massive round room. Once they were all in the doors closed behind them.

"You know, you look sexy in that uniform Rogue." Gambit smirked, which earned him a smile in return but Storm overheard him as well and admonished him.

"Stay focused, Remy."

He sighed and looked around.

"What exactly are we supposed to be doing?"

Pyro scoffed as he attached his wrist lighter. Even though he had never trained in here before, he knew what was coming. Sure enough, bright lights went off as the holographic technology began transforming the room.

When it was all done, the group found themselves standing in the middle of a deserted city. They were standing on the sidewalk, alone. No one else was around. Gambit looked around, amazed at what had just happened.

"Now what?"

'BOOM!'

He didn't have to ask again as an explosion caused them all to stumbled a little as a building went up in flames. Suddenly, a voice echoed throughout the room.

"Alright." Logan said. "You all have five minutes."

"Five minutes for what?" Pyro asked, this part was new.

"Listen up." Storm began. "Our mission is to look for and save the survivors. I'll go east with Kurt. Rogue and Gambit go west, Colossus and Kitty go north, Iceman and Pyro go south. Protect yourselves at all times, watch each other's backs."

After her order they all split up as directed. Storm and Nightcrawler kept going until cracks began appearing on the sidewalk.

'BAMF!'

Nightcrawler teleported her away just before an explosion from underneath the ground went off. They were both standing on the ledge of a building, she smiled at him for a moment before they heard the sound of screaming. They looked over to see two people trapped on the third floor of a flaming building. Nightcrawler quickly teleported the two away as Storm used her powers to create a tidal wave and put the fire out.

Meanwhile, Colossus and Kitty had arrived before a car that was on fire, a family of three trapped inside. Quickly phasing her way inside, Kitty grabbed them all and got them and Colossus tossed the car far away before it exploded.

Then, a series of blasts from lasers then went off. Kitty yelled in surprise as Colossus quickly grabbed a hold of her and spun around. The lasers harmless bounced off his back as Kitty was protected.

"Thanks, Peter." She smiled once the lasers stopped.

"Don't mention it."

The two of them then continued on to meet with Storm and Nightcrawler.

Gambit and Rogue were going west as they were told when yet another explosion went off. Gambit took her hand as they continued looking around for people they were supposed to be getting to safety.

"Look!" Rogue yelled. "Over there!"

They looked over to see a man a few feet from them on the sidewalk, buried under some rubble. He was moaning and calling out for help as the two ran over to him. They both began picking up the debris and throwing it off him before the sound of a loud stomping got their attention.

Gambit looked over to see a robot, the same height as him making it's way towards them. Rogue's eyes widened when she saw it.

"Remy!"

"Don't worry, Chere. I'll take care of this."

He then picked up a decent sized rock off the ground. It began to glow as Gambit used his powers to charge it up before throwing it like a baseball player at the robot. The rock nailed the robot's head, causing to explode on impact and the robot collapsed in a heap.

"Good job." Rogue said as she finished getting the man out.

Gambit shrugged.

"It's a talent."

Iceman and Pyro were the last group. They were running ahead when Logan's voice came across the speaker again.

"You all are doing great. Be aware, you've got two minutes left."

The two friends then looked at each other after hearing that.

"You think the others have finished already?" Iceman asked.

However, it was clear that Pyro didn't care as he just moved along without answering. Finally, the heard screaming as they saw up head a woman and a child being terrorized by a robot. They ran from it and headed inside a parked car which the robot proceeded to light on fire.

"John, get the two of them!" Iceman yelled. "I'll get the robot!"

The robot then noticed the two of them and began firing lasers at them. Iceman rolled out of the way and began firing shards of ice at it while Pyro stared at the flaming car before him.

The woman was screaming, so was the kid. Pyro held out his hand to take the flames away but nothing happened. He wasn't concentrating. He really didn't want to put the fire out. He could hear Iceman's fight with the robot in the background as he just kept watching the car.

Finally…

'BOOM!'

An explosion went off. The car was turned into instant junk and the woman and child inside had been killed. Iceman had just finished freezing the robot when he looked over in shock at the car.

"What the hell happened!"

He didn't get time for an answer as the Danger Room began going back to normal. The fires faded away, as did the buildings. The group was together, Iceman was still staring at his friend as the door slowly opened and Logan walked in.

"Good, you all were doing really good." He began. "You were making good time, rescued the civilians."

He then looked at Pyro.

"John? What happened?"

Pyro couldn't meet his stare at he just looked at the ground and shook his head.

"Hesitated." He finally answered.

Logan nodded.

"Well, it was first time. You'll get the hang off it soon enough. The rest of you, good job. We'll have another session tomorrow."

The leader of the team then walked off as the others regained their bearings but Gambit was glaring at Pyro as he walked over to his side.

"Nice job, you cost us the mission."

Pyro then turned his head and returned his glare with one of his own.

"Why don't you take your little missions and stick 'em up your ass?"

The others overheard this and watched as Pyro stormed his way out of the Danger Room. Shaking his head, Gambit then looked at Rogue.

"What the hell's his problem?"

Rogue bit her bottom lip slightly before shaking her head.

"I need to talk to him."

Rogue then quickly went ahead to catch up with the angry pyromaniac before he got to far away.


	71. Kill or Be Killed

XXXXXX

"John wait!"

John was storming his way down the hall when he heard Rogue's voice calling after him. He closed his eyes for a moment before turning around and seeing her jog lightly up to him.

"What do you want?" He asked.

"There's nothing going on between me and Remy." Rogue began as she brushed the hair from her eyes. "We're just friends, that's all."

Looking a little taken aback by her words, John then said;

"What makes you think I care?"

"Because I know."

"Know what?"

Now it was Rogue who looked uncomfortable as she looked down at her shoes as she reminded herself to choose her next words carefully.

"I've known for a little while now…ever since back at Bobby's house, when I grabbed your ankle."

Rogue slowly looked up to see that John's eyes looked a little darker now but held a glint of amusement. She then swallowed nervously before asking;

"Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I may be a lot of things, Rogue." John responded as he began taking off his wrist lighter. "But I'm not the kind of person that messes with his best friend's girl."

"Just tell me that it wasn't my fault." Rogue then said. "That you didn't leave because of me."

However, that comment looked like it had angered the pyromaniac.

"I left because of a lot of reason's, you sure weren't one of them. I had known for what, three months? You really think that you and Bobby drooling over each other is what drove me away?"

"You're acting just like you did back then."

"Because I'll always be the odd-man out, Rogue. You might have noticed that."

"No, you're not."

"Oh yeah? Then what am I?"

Rogue stared at John for a moment before answering.

"You're John Allerdyce, a mutant with fire capabilities with the nickname Pyro. You were a student at Xavier's School for Gifted Children for a few years before leaving to join a mutant terrorist, now you're back and wondering where you're going to go, what you're going to do. You probably think you're alone. But you're not."

"Oh no?"

"No."

John and Rogue just watched each other, not doing anything or saying anything for a few moments before Rogue finally turned back around and headed to the dressing room to take off her uniform. Since John wasn't wearing one, he held his lighter in his hand, flicked it open once before heading back down the hall to the elevator, taking it up to the second floor.

However, in Washington D.C a large building had been set up for the sight as the first register office to carrying out the mutant registration act. Mutants were outside waiting to fill in, there were desks and plenty of people inside to take down their information.

Multiple news broadcasters had shown up as well and at the moment a reporter was interviewing Senator Graydon Creed.

"Senator Creed, this is the first office to open up in order for mutants to come down and register, how are things going so far?"

"Things are going smoothly." Graydon responded. "These mutants have shown that they have nothing to hide and have no problem revealing their identity to the government."

"What do you think about Henry McCoy resigning from his position as Secretary of Mutant Affairs?"

"I feel sorry for Henry, he reacted first without thinking. He needs to come to terms with the fact that this act is necessary for us to continue on as a society."

Inside, a woman with purple hair took a seat at a desk in front of man named 'Mr. Louis.' He smiled at her and began speaking.

"Do you have your ID and social security card?" He asked.

The woman handed him her card then said;

"I'm afraid I lost my ID."

"That's okay. We can still take down your information." He spoke as he typed. "What is your first and last name?"

"Elizabeth Braddock."

"Date of birth?"

"December 15, 1986."

"And what is your mutation, Elizabeth?"

"I can generate psychic-bolts that can harm, injure, or kill others."

To prove her point, she then formed a psy-katana that she gripped in her right hand. It glowed with purple energy as Louis' eyes widened.

"It's okay, I don't need a demonstration-"

But before he could finish, Psylocke swung the blade and it slit the throat of Louis who died instant and feel to the floor. Others screamed upon seeing it, and Callisto who was now standing in the middle of the room pulled out a machine gun. She began firing at the humans inside.

Outside, people heard the gun shots and began to scream and run away. Cops who were standing guard tried to rush in, but Blob stopped them and easily knocked them out. A Latino woman with black hair, Arclight sent out shockwaves at the press vans, making them explode. The force of one knocked Senator Creed off his feet.

Mutants who ran from the building were then targeted by Spike, a large black mutant who could use his bones as weapons. He sent sharp projectiles at them while yelling;

"You cowards! You are a disgrace to your people!"

After getting through outside, Callisto, Psylocke, and Blob joined Arclight and Spike outside and then began walking until they saw Senator Creed on the ground, crawling in order to try and get away.

"Get him." Callisto ordered.

Spike quickly grabbed Graydon's ankle and pulled him back. He then lifted him up so that he was in a sitting position as Arclight grabbed the fallen camera and pointed it at him.

"I am Senator Graydon Creed." He gasped. "If you try anything-"

"Shut your mouth!" Psylocke spat as she lifted her blade under his chin. Callisto smiled at her before moving in front of the camera and began speaking.

"You wanted us to identify ourselves? Well you got it. We are the Morlocks. Do you really expect for us to roll over and die? We will fight you to the very end…and we will win."

Callisto then looked to Psylocke and nodded. Psylocke then swung the blade and it connected underneath Graydon's chin, and with the force of the swing and sharpness of the blade it literary took Senator Creed's head off.

As his decapitated body slumped to the side, Arclight aimed the camera back up to Callisto face.

"The war has begun."

Upon hearing the sirens, the five of them quickly moved along and headed down the sewers to avoid more trouble. Callisto smiled to herself, knowing that she was continuing what Magneto had started.

"I hope you were right about that, Callisto." Arclight then said.

"Of course it was right. What do these mutants have, guns? We'll beat them easily."

Psylocke however wasn't so sure. Yeah they were powerful, but they had just killed a well known senator. The reaction from the humans wouldn't be pretty.


	72. Project Wideawake

XXXXXX

Downtown Manhattanin the upper floor of the Worthington Industries building, the new CEO of the company Warren Worthington III was sitting at the head of the table in a meeting with his fellow board members. He looked down at his twenty-five hundred dollar silver Tiffany suit and smiled a little. He'd done what his father had wanted him to do, take over the company for him. Warren just didn't expect it to happen this soon…but life was full of surprises.

"Well, gentleman." Warren began. "As we know, the profit margins for the company were down significantly this quarter compared to last year."

"Yes." One of the members spoke. "We fear that one of our factories may be closing soon if this continues. Over two thousand people will be out of work."

"Worthington Industries has never had to close down a factory and we aren't about to start now." Warren assured. "We just need knew ideas, some new concepts."

He then put a blueprint on the table.

"This is a new prototype I have in mind."

Ryan Hall, one of the members leaned in to see what it was. It looked to be a pair of wings...of metal wings.

"What is this?"

"They don't really have a name yet, but I'm thinking of calling them a 'glider.' These metal wings will be able to give a person the actual ability to acheive flight."

"But what would be the purpose?"

Warren bit his bottom lip for a moment.

"We could sell them to the army. Imagine how useful they could be in a time of war."

While the meeting went on, several officers were accompanying the Secretary of Defense, Bolivar Trask down the hallway. He had requested a meeting with the CEO and had arrived a few hours early but the situation was urgent and he couldn't wait any longer.

"Mr. Worthington."

Warren looked down at the phone on his desk, his assistant Janet who was sitting at a desk out in the hall had just paged him.

"What is it?" He asked.

"There are some people here from Washington here to see you."

"They aren't supposed to be here until two."

"They say it's urgent."

Warren looked up at the board members and frowned.

"Could you all excuse me for a few minutes?"

They all got up and headed for the door as Warren pressed the button on his phone and spoke to his secretary.

"Alright, send them in."

A few moments later the officials led Trask into the room.

"Mr. Worthington." Trask greeted. "I apologize for interrupting your meeting but I feel that this is a situation that cannot wait."

"It's no problem, Mr. Trask. Now, what seems to be the problem?"

"As you know the Mutant Registration Act became law a few weeks ago. The other day one of the men who supported the bill, Senator Graydon Creed was murdered by a mutant."

"Yes, I've heard." Warren responded. "But what does this have to do with me or my company?"

"Due to the controversy of the bill we know that there are going to be more mutants out there who react violently to it and we are going to need to be able to defend ourselves and our citizens from them. And unfortunately, our police force isn't up to the task."

Trask then cleared his throat.

"We are going to be designing new weapons and we are going to need a lot of steel to be able to do it, a couple hundred tons in fact. We are prepared to offer your company a lot of money to purchase your steel. In fact, I will make the same deal I made to your father a couple months ago."

"You spoke to my father once?" Warren asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes."

"And what was his response?"

"He was a little reluctant to sell to us, because he had a mutant for a son-"

"I'm not a mutant, anymore."

Warren then got up from his seat and walked across the room so that he was staring out the huge glass windows. He then spotted a white bird fly across the sky and closed his eyes for a moment, shaking his head. He remembered what it was like to do such a thing…it was still a painful feeling knowing he couldn't anymore.

"What kind of weapons are we talking about here?" He finally asked.

"We are calling the whole thing, 'Project Wideawake'." Trask answered. "They will be robots attached with weapons."

Warren's brows furrowed as he turned to face the other man.

"Robots?"

"Yes. Ten foot tall robots capable of withstanding tremendous damage as well as fighting against the dangerous mutants out there."

"How is that even possible?"

"You don't have to concern yourself with that, Mr. Worthington."

Warren then exhaled deeply as he took a seat. He then rubbed his head as he continued to think about this.

"I know that you have a conflict of interest of this matter." Trask continued. "With you being a mutant and all, but I assure you-"

"I told you that I'm not a mutant anymore." Warren snapped as he stood up. "I had my wings amputated. I'm just concerned about this whole idea."

"I told you that these robots will only be used to defend the population against dangerous mutants who are hell bent on starting a war with humanity. Nothing more, you have my word."

Looking down at his desk, Warren began to twiddle his thumbs. Selling this steel to the government who certainly return the company back to where they were, hell, they would be even better off then they were a year ago.

If he didn't sell to Trask then he would just go to some other metal processing company that would.

"Okay." Warren finally said as he stood up and extended his hand. "I will sell you all the steel you need."

"I wise decision, Warren." Trask smiled as he returned the handshake. "Your father would be proud of you."

He then looked over his side to one of the men standing with him.

"Mr. Alan, please write Warren a check."

"Hey." Warren then spoke again, as an idea came to his head. "If you need a name for those robots of yours, call them 'Sentinels.'"

Trask raised an eyebrow.

"Sentinels? That's an interesting name. Why that?"

"It was the name of a product my father was working on before he died. It never got off the ground."

Trask smiled a little.

"Well, Warren. I think we can do that. In honor of your father, we will call them Sentinels."

Mr. Alan than handed Warren an eight-figure check that caused a small smile to appear on the younger man's face as he looked down at it.

"It was nice doing business with you gentleman." He said.

Trask shook his hand.

"Believe me, the pleasure was ours."


	73. Sudden Impact

XXXXXX

As darkness fell that night, Scott was in his bed tossing and turning as a nightmare interrupted his sleep. The nightmare was horrible, like the ones he used to have after Alkali Lake.

Thousands of Chinese people were running for their lives as a bird made of pure energy was flying through the sky. Cars on the street suddenly froze in their place, refusing to budge no matter how hard the people in them stepped on the gas. Finally giving up, they got up and joined the others on the street running.

"God bird!" One of the yelled as he looked up at it. "God bird!"

Suddenly explosions rocked the city of Bangkok. Giant neon signs that lighted up the streets began crashing down to the ground below, some people were not able to get away and were killed instantly.

More people were being wiped out, their bodies disappearing in a cloud of ash. More screams…more destruction. Finally, from miles away the Grand China Princess Hotel collapsed in on itself, killing everyone inside.

"Scott. Can you hear me?"

"Jean?"

"I'm still here."

"Why are you doing this?" Scott asked. "Look at what your doing!"

"I see it, Scott." Jean responded. "This has to be done."

In his bed, Scott cried out as he heard the love of his life's voice in his head. He had never heard her sound like this before…so emotionless. So uncaring.

"How can you say that?" He then asked. "Your killing thousands of people!"

"In order to save billions."

Jean then made her body glow brighter as she flu from Bangkok to another city in China. She began manipulating the ocean as she did so, making it grow taller and taller into a giant wall of water.

"You'll understand what I'm doing soon enough, my dear. I promise that you will."

"Come back to me." He pleaded.

Jean smiled.

"I will. I promise you that I will...soon enough."

The last thing Scott saw in his nightmare was the wall of water crashing down on other city of people before he rolled off the bed, hitting the ground with a hard 'thump.' He quickly got to his feet and looked around the room widely, his face sweating profusely.

He then took a deep breath as he calmed himself.

"It's just a dream." He muttered. "Just a dream."

Carrying himself from his room down the stairs, Scott continued on to head to the kitchen to grab a glass of water when he heard the sound of the television on from the lounge. Curiosity got the better of him to see who it was and it ended up being no surprise to see Jones sitting on the couch, changing the channel with his eyes.

"Bad dream?" Jones asked.

"How do you know?" Scott responded.

"You use to have them all the time after we got back from Alkali Lake."

Scott nodded. The younger boy was always up whenever he was after a nightmare. Scott then made his way towards the couch and carefully sat down next to him.

"Yeah." He began. "It was a bad dream."

"About Professor Grey?"

He nodded again. Scott then looked towards the television for a moment before deciding to bring something up.

"Jones, I haven't told any of the students yet but I'm going to be the new headmaster of the school."

The young boy then looked up at him.

"Are you okay with that?"

"Yeah." Jones responded. "Sure…you've always been my favorite teacher here."

"Really? I find that hard to believe."

"Well, you're strict but you care."

"Yeah, I do."

Jones finally settled on a news broadcast. Scott watched in for a few moments before deciding to pick up the conversation.

"Have you thought about what you're going to do when you graduate? It won't be long."

"Not really. I might go to college."

Scott smiled a little. That sounded like a good idea. Jones was smart and could pass for being normal. Not only that, he wouldn't make a good member of the X-Men with the kind of power he had. Being able to blink something on or off…he could also use it to open doors and things like that, but it didn't really come in handy in a time of battle.

Not everyone was meant to do the things that they did. And it was probably a good thing too.

Scott then continued to watch the television as the reporter on the broadcast suddenly said;

"This just breaking, a shocking attack in the city ofBangkok-"

Jones then turned the channel but he yelled;

"No, go back!"

He did so as Scott got to his feet and walked closer to the television.

"-as well as the city of Shanghai were rocked with an attack late tonight. It is not clear who or what was responsible but all we can tell from the early reports is that the death toll is expected to be in the tens of thousands."

The next thing he knew, Scott was waking Logan up to inform of the news.

"Are you sure it was Jean?" Logan asked.

"I'm sure. I saw it. I saw it all happening in my head. You see Jean and I have this connection…she linked our minds together shortly after we came back from Liberty Island. I can feel her."

"Why is she doing this?"

"I don't know. And with the registration act going on here all she's going to do is make things ten times worse!"

"So what are we going to do? How do we handle this?" Logan then asked.

Scott threw his arms in the air in frustration before taking a seat on Logan's bed. He then shook his head as he looked up at the other man.

"I have no idea. If you do, please tell me."

But Logan didn't as he responded;

"I guess the only thing we can do is wait."

And at the end of the day it was true. They wouldn't be able to track Jean to a location, all they could do was wait for her. Wait for her to come back to them and explain herself…Scott knew she would eventually.

He just knew it.


	74. None Of Us Are Saints

XXXXXX

The following morning Rogue was sitting with Kitty in the student lounge talking while a little ways away John was leaning against the wall flicking his lighter open and closed as he watched them. As he just continued to stand there suddenly he felt a presence right next to him.

"That's a pretty sight, ain't it?"

Remy smirked as he shuffled a few cards in his hand before placing them in his pocket. John ignored him as he continued to look at Rogue.

"I know what you're up to, and it's not going to work." Remy spoke again.

"What are you talking about?" John asked.

"My eyes may be red-on-black but they see just as good as any other pair."

"Good for you."

Remy then turned to him.

"She's my girl…stay away from her."

Smirking, John moved so that he was facing the other man as well.

"Well she's my friend and I don't want someone like you around her."

"Someone like me?"

"Yeah. You were in prison once, you think I forgot?"

"How could you? You helped break me out." Remy reminded. "Just as much as a criminal as me. So what's the difference between you and I?"

"I did something for a cause." John responded. "You did something for yourself."

"For a cause." Remy mocked. "Such a saint, you are."

John shook his head.

"None of us are saints."

"Very poetic. But you best stay away from her, Pyro. Or things will get ugly."

"Yeah? What are you going to do?"

Remy threw his hand faster than John could react. His fist cracked against his face and the pyromaniac fell to the floor. The others near the student lounge were now paying attention to the exchange as John lunged up and grabbed Remy, slamming him against the wall and punching him the ribs.

"Fight! Fight!" One of the younger kids yelled out as Rogue watched in horror.

Remy attacked John, pushing him backwards into the bookcase but before he could get another shot off, John reached down and picked Remy up, throwing him onto a small table in the hallway. It broke, sending Remy to the floor in a blast of wooden shards.

"John! Remy! Stop!" Rogue yelled as she ran over to them.

By this point the two of them were rolling on the ground throwing punches as Rogue pulled both her gloves off. Once she reached them she touched both boys, the back of Remy's neck and John's face draining them both at the same time.

After just a few but terrible seconds Rogue let go and backed away as Remy and John gasped for air.

"What is wrong with you two!" Rogue yelled, upset that she had to use her powers. She then turned away and ran up the staircase to her room.

By this point, Ororo and Kurt were running down the hallway to the scene of the fight.

"What is going on here?" Ororo asked.

"The two of them were fighting." Kitty answered.

As John and Remy glared at each other as they got up, Kurt quickly grabbed a hold of John and teleported him out the mansion, to the outside just to make sure nothing broke out again.

"Just stay out here and cool off." Kurt said as the pyromaniac gave him a look before turning away and beginning to walk to the basketball court.

Kurt continued to watch over him for a few moments until Ororo came outside as well.

"Is John okay?" She asked.

"He's seems fine. What about Remy?"

Ororo shook her head.

"He's fine but this is the last thing we need now. With everything that's going on-"

"I know." Kurt responded. "I think we both could use a breath of fresh air. You want to join me?"

"I don't know if that's a good idea."

"We can go at night. It will be safer. I know a good place."

She smiled a little, to be honest Ororo wouldn't mind getting away from the mansion for a little while.

"Alright, I'll see you tonight."

Back inside the school, Rogue was in her room and was sitting on her bed. She held the sample of the cure in her hands…just staring at it thinking the same way she had done since the moment she had gotten it. She was watching it so intently that she didn't even notice her door opening and Bobby coming in.

"Rogue did you-"

"Jesus, Bobby!" Rogue yelled as she jumped up. "Did you ever hear of knocking?"

"Sorry, I was just worried about you."

"Why?"

"I heard that you broke up a fight between John and Remy."

"Yeah, I did." She then muttered sarcastically; "These powers came in handy again."

Bobby then walked further into the room, closing the door behind him. He stared at the test tube in his former girlfriends hand, a glowing blue liquid inside of it.

"Is that-"

"It's the cure." Rogue finished. "The very last sample."

"How did you get it?"

"Does that really matter?"

Bobby continued to stare at her. The whole mutant cure situation had occurred a little over six months ago now, Rogue had this sample the whole time?

"I've finally made up my mind." Rogue began. "I'm going to take it."

"Why? Why have you been waiting so long?"

"I couldn't make up my mind. I keep going over this over and over in my head, but I'm sure now. I'm going to take it."

"Are you sure?" Bobby asked.

"Yes, I'm sure! I didn't ask for this Bobby. Before I came her I had a normal life, I had plans. Everything got messed up because of this. I accepted it because I didn't have a choice. But now I do."

She remembered asking Storm on her second day here that if the Professor could cure her, she said that it didn't work that way. Rogue then had to accept that she would have these powers for the rest of her life, that she would never be normal. But now she could be, she really didn't know what had been putting this off but Rogue had finally decided that now was the time.

Also, the last thing she wanted now was to be caught in the middle between John and Remy. Sitting down on her bed, Rogue continued to stare at the cure as Bobby walked over and sat down next to her.

"If you're sure about it, than do it." Bobby said.

Rogue looked over at him.

"Yeah?"

Bobby nodded.

"Yeah. You're my friend, I don't want you to have to live like this if you don't want to."

The two of them smiled at each other for a moment before Rogue began;

"Thank you for being there for me when I first got here."

"You don't have to thank me for that." Bobby responded.

Rogue then gave him a quick kiss on the cheek so that her powers didn't affect him. He smiled at her again before getting up and heading out of her room.


	75. Save the Last One

XXXXXX

BAMF!

Once the blue smoke cleared Ororo looked around to where Kurt had just teleported the two of them and saw that she was standing on the roof of a large building somewhere in Manhattan. It was a beautiful sight, all of the lights from the city making everything glow in bright colors. The air was cool that night, it really made her forget about all the terrible things that were going on, at least for a moment.

"It's really pretty." She began. "I can see why you come here."

"Tonight, I wanted to bring you because I wanted to talk."

"You could have talked to me back at the school."

"I wanted to be alone." Kurt smiled a little as his tail began to swish back and forth lightly, out of nervousness.

"Did you want to ask me something?"

"Aren't you tired of all this? Tired of all the fighting? I am…I didn't expect all this when I decided to stay at the school."

A sad smile then appeared on Ororo's face as she looked down.

"I was tired of it after my third year at the school."

"Why did you stay?"

"It isn't a nine to five job." Ororo said as she shook her head. "It isn't something you just walk away from. But now, with the Professor and everything else…I've been wondering…"

"What it'd me like to leave?" Kurt finished. "To have a normal life?"

"Yes. I'd love to see Kenya again."

"Why did you leave?"

"My village was attacked by rebels. That's how the Professor found me, I guess I always thought I owed him for that."

"If you ever went back…would you take me?" Kurt asked.

Ororo looked at him in surprise.

"You'd like to go?"

"Would they be afraid of me?"

"No. The people there saw my powers as a gift. You would be treated just fine there."

The two of them smiled at each other as they were now facing one another. Slowly, Kurt reached up and lightly ran a finger down her cheek.

"You are so beautiful." He whispered.

Blinking, Ororo leaned forward and finally the two of them kissed. Kurt placed his hands on her waist as she wrapped her arms around her neck. It felt good to do this, it was something that was long overdo…

Just as the two of them began to slowly separate from each other an explosion rocked echoed throughout the air making the two of them jump. They could see it in the distance, made a few minutes away from the building.

"What's going on?" Ororo asked.

"I don't know. Hang on to me."

Kurt grabbed Ororo and teleported. He continued on until another explosion was heard and they reached the sight on it. Looking down, they saw it was a police station that was on fire and that mutants were attacking it.

"Oh no, it's the Morlocks." Ororo said.

"Who?"

"A group of mutants, they were on the news a few nights ago. We have to stop them!"

These mutants had vowed to fight against humans do to the passing of the registration act, little did they know that they were doing much more harm then good. Storm looking up at the sky and summoned a crash of thunder, getting their attention as she began to float down to the ground. Kurt teleported right next to her as Blob stopped beating a police-man with his own nightstick.

"I remember you two." Blob began. "You're the ones that sent me to prison."

"And you're about to experience some deja-vu." Storm responded.

But before she could do anything a shockwave hit her and Nightcrawler both, sending them off their feet and landing painfully on the ground.

"You filthy traitors." Arclight snarled as she walked closer towards them with Callisto at her side. "If you had any sense at all you'd be helping us."

"You think this is actually going to help!" Storm yelled as she got up and looked towards the station, no doubt dozens of cops dead inside. "If you keep doing this the government will send in the army next, you're going to start a war!"

"We're already at war!" Callisto then screamed as a few more of her group began to surround them. "The humans declared war on us! What else can we do? Let them throw us in camps and brand numbers in our flesh? I don't think so. That's not going to happen."

Storm continued to stare at the other woman, it was like she was listening to Magneto all over again when another rumbling quickly got her attention.

"Now what?" Nightcrawler asked.

The noise got louder as they all looked up and Storm had to do a double-take to make sure what she was seeing was real. Three large jet black robots were flying over them, they reminder her of the robots in the Danger Room only a bit smaller. They all looked at them in shock as the robot's eyes glowed red and it's robotic voice then said;

"Mutant DNA detected!"

"No way." Storm muttered to herself.

The Sentinel then opened up it's hand and sent a blast of electric energy down at them. Blob was hit and was practically vaporized by it as he dropped down to the ground, dead.

"What the hell are they!" Callisto yelled as Arclight sent a shockwave at them but it did little. Storm began firing lightning bolts at the Sentinels but it bounced harmlessly off their armor.

The robots began firing at them all, they all ran to get out of the way as a parked cop car was hit and instantly exploded. Nightcrawler rolled out of the way as he looked around widely for Storm.

The other Morlocks were hitting them with their power but it was just as useless and Callisto could see that this was a losing battle.

"Come on, let's get out of here!"

The Sentinels continued to fire as the Morlocks fell back, several more in the group got hit as they ran for a man-hole, heading back down in the sewers. Once they were gone the robots turned their attention to Storm, there was no time to move, nothing to be done.

'BAMF!'

The sudden _whoosh_ of teleportation made Storm whirl around just in time to see Nightcrawler's eyes widen in pain. The smoke from his teleportation had barely cleared, but he was solid enough to take the deadly energy in her stead.

"May god protect you, Ororo." Kurt said as he smiled a little.

"Kurt?"

Then to her horror, Ororo realized that he had been hit.

Kurt watched her eyes as slowly blackness began to overcome him. He fell backwards as Ororo, the woman he had never been able to tell he loved was the last thing he saw. Ororo continued to watch helplessly as he began to fall to the ground.

"_Kurt_!"


	76. The Maker

XXXXXX

Continuing to watch until Nightcrawler's body couldn't be seen anymore, Storm's grief quickly turned to anger when she looked back up to see the three robots began flying up towards the building she was standing on top of.

"Ororo Munroe. Surrender or be killed." One of them spoke.

Storm didn't even have time to process that the robot had her name in its database as her eyes rolled in the back of her head. She let out a scream of rage as she formed a giant tidal wave that came down from the sky, crashing down on the Sentinels who were engulfed and crashed down to the ground. Pushing her powers to the max, she then formed a tornado that came down on them, picking them up as well as several cars and ripping a pole out from the ground.

They were spun around multiple times before being flung away. The sound of thunder began going off and rain began coming down heavily as Storm's emotions were off the rail. After a few more moments, she finally got a hold of herself and flu down from the building to the street below.

Looking around widely, she finally saw Nightcrawler laying on the street, motionless. She ran over to him and knelt down at his side, pressing her fingers against his neck and was shocked when she felt a weak pulse.

"Oh, please don't let it be too late."

Using all her strength to pick him up over her shoulder, Storm used her powers to fly up into the air and to the direction of the mansion to get Nightcrawler medical help.

Two days had gone by since the attack and it had been broadcasted all over the news about the robots known as Sentinels. Nightcrawler had been wounded and was in a coma, and hoping to do some good, Henry decided to travel back to Washington in an attempt to find out what was the case and why something like this were released into the public and targeting mutants. Geting out of his car, Henry walked up to the doors of the Pentagon and was let in by secruity. He knew that he would never get a meeting with the President right now, but hoped that maybe he could get a hold of Trask.

As he walked through the halls, he was getting looks from everyone else who worked there as he made his way to the office of Trask and just as he was in sight of it, Trask himself exited with several others behind him.

"Bolivar." Henry called out.

"Henry." Trask smiled. "What a plesant surprise."

"I need to talk to you."

"I'm afraid I don't have time. I have an important meeting to get to."

Trask and the others began walking down the next hallway towards a door that was being secured by a guard with a machine gun. However, Hank followed Trask anyway.

"I know you had something to do with these Sentinels, Trask. How did you get the President to go along with this?"

"The President agreed that we needed better weapons to fight dangerous mutants." Trask responded while continuing to walk.

"All you are doing is making things worse. More blood is going to be spilled and it's going to be on your hands."

Trask then stopped and turned around to look Henry in the eye.

"Is that a threat?"

"It's whatever you want it to be."

"I'd advise you to leave now, or I'll have you arrested."

Trask and his men continued on to the room and Henry watched them until the door closed and the guard eyed him as he took a deep breath and spun around. He really didn't know who else he could talk to, or who even willingly talk to him about those robots when he suddenly heard a voice.

"Hank?"

Henry now found himself staring at a bald Native American man in his mid-fifties wearing a leather trench coat. Blinking several times as he looked at the man, Henry finally recognized him.

"Forge?"

Forge was a former member of the X-Men, back when he himself was one when he was younger. He had a superhuman talent for invention, an intuitive genius, it was as natural as breathing for him. Forge had even designed the Danger Room but left the mansion soon after, Hank had no idea what had happen to him.

"I had a feeling a might run into someday around here." Forge smiled as they approached each other and hugged.

"Forge, what are you doing here?" Henry asked as they let each other go and he continued to look the other mutant over.

"I'm a government weapons contractor now. I have been for years now."

"Why haven't you ever visited the school?"

Forge then looked around before staring back at his old teammate.

"Let's talk outside."

The two of them then left the Pentagon and went to the car Henry arrived in. He drove them far away so they wouldn't be seen talking by anyone important.

"I was always afraid of being followed if I went back to the school. They know I'm a mutant, I didn't want to take a chance of leading anyone to the school."

"I can understand that." Henry responded. He too wondered over the years if any extremist would try to harm him or anyone he cared about.

"So why did you resign?" Forge asked. "You were doing a lot of good."

"I couldn't serve this government with the registration act in place."

"Yeah, I can understand that."

"What do you know about these Sentinels?" Henry then asked.

Forge took a deep breath.

"I can tell you a lot, I'm the one who designed them."

Henry looked at him in shock but Forge quickly clarified himself.

"Not to go after mutants, Trask made that decision himself. The robots are the same ones I designed for the Danger Room, just larger and bit more powerful. They have a lot better steel because Trask bought it from Worthington Industries."

"Worthington Industries?"

"Yes."

"I can't believe this."

He then remembered that Angel...the son of Warren Worthington Senior was the CEO of the company now after he left the school and was the only one who could have approved of any sale of his company's steel to the government.

"So...if they are just like the robots in the Danger Room, they can be destroyed." Henry spoke again.

"Yes...aim for the top of their heads, their CPU. Once the brain goes, the whole body goes."

"Thank you, Forge."

"Don't mention it." Forge responded as the two of them clasped hands. "Take one of them out for me."

They then smiled at each other but before either one could speak again, another voice approaching them from behind got their attention.

"Henry McCoy."

Hank looked over to see several police officers coming towards him.

"You're under arrest."

"For what?" Hank asked in surprise. "I left the building when I was told."

"For failure to register with the government."

As his hands were then taken and cuffed behind this back, Hank remembered how he refused to comply with the registration act and ignored the possible punishment for doing so. He then thought of the person who must have put the cops on him...Trask.

Shaking his head, Hank allowed himself to be led to a nearby police car as Forge watched helplessly.


	77. Things Fall Apart

XXXXXX

Turning off the news broadcast, Scott shook his head as he just couldn't listen to it anymore. More chaos, more death, more everything. Now, more than ever he wished the Professor was here. He needed him right now, he needed his guidance and wisdom but he was gone…killed by the woman he loved.

He then thought about the phone call he had taken no more than twenty minutes ago. It was Hank, giving him information about the Sentinels and also telling him that he'd been arrested for not registering. And right now, there was nothing Scott could do to help him.

Walking down the hall, Scott headed to the infirmary where Ororo was staying with Kurt and hadn't moved since they got back from that night when they were attacked. When he got to entrance he looked in to see Ororo sitting by the bed that Kurt was laying on, hooked onto machines that were keeping him alive.

"How is he?" Scott asked.

"No change." Ororo responded, not even looking up at him.

Clearing his throat, he continued;

"Hank found out more about these Sentinels. He says that the government got the steel to make them from Worthington Industries."

That made Ororo look at him and Scott nodded.

"I sent Bobby, Peter, and Kitty to go speak to Warren and get an explanation. Hank also found out that Forge helped build them. You remember him, don't you?"

"Vaguely." She responded. "So he works for the government too?"

"Yes. He also told Hank how to destroy them, so when we go out there-"

"I'm not going out there." Ororo interrupted.

"What are you talking about?" Scott asked, his brows furrowed with slight confusion.

"I mean, I'm done. I don't owe these people anymore."

Taking a deep breath, Scott walked further into the room.

"I know you're upset-"

"Upset?" Ororo laughed bitterly as she got up. "Kurt told me that the Professor would give us a sign to continue on. This was the sign? Him almost getting killed? And for what? He never did anything to anybody!"

As her voice got louder Scott placed a hand on her shoulder which Ororo violently pushed off.

"I'm not apart of this team anymore! I'm done, I'm retired!"

"What about the Professor?"

"He's dead, Scott. And I've repaid my debt to him."

"Think about what you're saying."

"I've thought about it. I've thought about it for a long time. I'm going back home."

"And what about these Sentinels?" Scott asked. "They're not just going to disappear, we need to do something about them."

"It's your fight now." Ororo then sat back down. "I told you…I'm done."

Scott continued to look at her, not believing what he was hearing. He knew that Ororo always had slight anger towards humans, but never like this. But it was more than that, he had grown up with her, just like he had with Jean. She had fought along side him time after time. Right now he had a helpless feeling in his stomach…it was like he was losing someone else right before his very eyes.

"Ororo, please." He practically begged. "The team needs you…I need you."

She shook her head as she wiped away a tear.

"I'm sorry, Scott."

Continuing to look at her for a few more moments, Scott finally turned away as he lowered his head feeling even more distressed then before. The team was falling apart right in front of him and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Once he reached the foyer of the building he towards the end table and saw a picture of the Professor, in his early years sitting on top of it.

Scott picked it up and stared down at it, looking at his fallen leader.

"I'm sorry if I let you down, Professor."

Meanwhile, at Worthington Industries busy at his desk looking over new reports Warren sat when suddenly the door opened and one of his assistants, Brooke entered the room.

"Mr. Worthington, you have people here to see you. I tried telling them that you're very busy but they are insistent."

"Did they say who they were?"

"They said you were their old teammate?" Brooke responded, looking a little confused.

Warren sighed as a smile came to his face. He expected a visit from them, eventually. And he had a feeling what they wanted to discuss.

"Send them in."

Brooke nodded and left the room. Just a few moments later, Bobby, Peter, and his old girlfriend Kitty came into the room.

"Iceman, Colossus, and Shadowcat." Warren grinned as he got out of his seat. "How nice to see you all again."

"I wish we could say the same, Warren." Bobby responded.

"Why is that?"

"You've seen the news." Peter snapped. "The registration act is law, and now there is robots out there hunting un-registered mutants."

"So, register with government." Warren shrugged. "Problem solved."

"Kurt was attacked by them a few nights ago. There's still a chance that he could die. He didn't even have a chance to register, the government is just going after any mutant they consider dangerous."

Warren frowned a little, remembering how that it was Kurt that nicknamed him 'Angel' when he arrived at the mansion. But he quickly pushed those thoughts away, they were in the past.

"And we also found out that it was you that sold the government the steel needed to make them." Kitty then spoke up. "Why did you do it? You should have known how it was going to affect mutants out there, how it was going to affect us."

"The company was losing money." Warren explained. "Selling the steel to them put us back on track."

"You did this for money." Peter almost snarled as he approached the other man threateningly but Kitty and Bobby both put their hands on his shoulder to hold him back. "No thought at all at how they would be used? How we, your teammates would be the ones out there fighting them. And maybe dying in the process?"

Warren looked at him quietly for a moment before turning away and heading to the window. Kitty then looked back at Bobby and Peter.

"Why don't you two wait outside?"

The boys did so as Kitty walked over to Warren and placed a hand on his arm.

"I know that losing your wings must have been hard on you. But you are still a mutant-"

"I am not a mutant." Warren then snapped as he shoved her hand away. "That life is behind me now. I'm sorry about Kurt, but it wasn't my fault. If you guys don't want to get killed, them just register with the government. That's the only advise I can give you."

Kitty gave her ex-boyfriend a look of disgust before turning away, but Warren quickly got a hold of himself and headed after her.

"Hey!" He yelled as he gently grabbed her arm. "I'm sorry about the way things ended between us. I was angry...but I still care about you, a lot. Why don't you stay with me in my penthouse? You look normal, no one will know you're a mutant. You''ll be safe."

"You expect me to live normally with all this going on?" Kitty responded incredulously. "Have you even turned on the news? Do you have any idea what's going on out there?"

"Yeah, I do. That's why I don't want anything to happen to you. Stay with me."

Looking him up and down for a moment, Kitty responded;

"You came to the school, the Professor took you in. And this is the way you repay him? You should be ashamed of yourself."

Warren continued looking at her.

"I won't abandon my team, my friends. Not like you did."

She finally turned away and violently opened the door, heading out to where Bobby and Peter were waiting as tears came to her eyes as Warren lowered his head, shaking it for a moment before turning back to his desk to get back to work.


	78. Violent Echoing

XXXXXX

On the streets of a usually quiet suburban neighborhood in Dublin, Ireland a ruckus was being heard by those who were home that morning. A boy, who looked no more than eleven years old was being chased down the sidewalk by several other boys who seemed to be two or even three years older than him.

"Come back here you little wimp!" One of them yelled as they continued to give chase.

The boy looked behind him as he ran and in that split second he tripped and fell to the ground, skinning his knee in the process causing him to yell out and tears on pain to start flowing down his cheeks.

"Aw, look. He hurt his little knee." Said one as they stopped running and slowly began approaching the younger boy.

But suddenly, all three bullies were lifted about five feet off the ground by the backs of their pants giving them all atomic wedgies. They all yelled out in pain for a few moments before being dropped back down. They all looked around in confusion before seeing a woman now standing over them, her bright orange eyes being the only thing they could pay attention too.

"Be gone." Jean growled.

The bullies got up as quickly as they could and scrambled away, tripping and bumping into each other along the way until they were a safe distance away. Jean then turned her attention to the hurt little boy still on the sidewalk. She knelt down in front of him and smiled.

"Hi, what's your name?"

"Adam." He replied, still clutching at his knee in pain.

"Let me see." Jean then said.

Adam took his hands away and Jean saw the knee that was dripping dark red blood. Jean focused on it, and in the blink of an eye his knee was healed. The boy's jaw dropped as he looked at his once damaged knee that had now gone back to normal, no blood, no pain, nothing. Adam then looked up at the woman in shock.

"How did you do that?"

"I can do lots of things."

"Like what?"

"Do you want to see?"

The boy nodded as Jean got back up and focused her attention on a nearby tree in front of a house. She extended her hand and suddenly the tree was now white and shining brightly as it was turned to crystal. Jean then looked over at a car that looked pretty old. She merely nodded and the car was now bright gold as Adam continued to watch in amazement.

"Are you a mutant?" He asked as he got off the sidewalk.

Jean shook her head.

"I started off as one, I'm not anymore. I'm far more powerful than any other mutant."

"My mum told me that if I were to ever see a mutant I should stay away." Adam responded. "She said that mutants are bad."

"Some mutants are bad, just like some humans are bad. But I…I'm a whole lot worse."

After that, the car that she turned gold was thrown off the ground and it crashed through the living room of a house. Tremors than rippled through the streets before they exploded out and large pieces were sent out everywhere, going through houses with the force of a volcanic eruption.

Adam screamed when he saw this and quickly began to run away but Jean turned her attention not only to him but to the remained of the neighborhood. Focusing all her rage, Jean created a telekinetic storm that began disintegrating everything in sight. Houses exploded into dust, as did cars. Trees were thrown, poles were ripped out of the ground, and finally Adam's body exploded into dust as well.

With her eyes gone completely black, fire began to surround Jean's body as she lifted off the ground and in her firebird form she rocketed through the air, heading to her next target.

XXXXXX

Back in Washington, President McKenna was waiting in the Oval Office when finally Hank McCoy was led in by several guards.

"Henry." McKenna greeted.

"Mr. President."

Once the guards left and the door was closed the President sighed and walked closer towards the mutant.

"Are you alright?"

"Why did you get me out of jail?" Hank then asked. "It's where I belong isn't it?"

"No, it isn't." He sighed. "Remember, the mutant registration act going into law wasn't my fault."

"But what about these Sentinels?"

"The what?"

"The Sentinels." Hank responded, incredulously. "The robots going after the so called dangerous mutants. You can't tell me that you don't know about them, or seem them on the news."

Hank then began to think about that. And have they even been on the news yet? And could Trask have gone around the President in getting them made?

"Trask said you agreed to better weapons to fight dangerous mutants."

"He never told me anything about robots."

Hank gave him and look and the President held out his arms.

"I swear, I don't know a thing about this." McKenna responded. "But I brought you here to ask you something."

The President then turned around and headed back to his desk, picking up a folder. He then turned back around and handed it to Hank.

"Over the past week, major cities all over the world have been attacked. Moscow was taken out by something that had the power equivalent to a nuclear explosion. Bangkok was next, the death toll has been tens of thousands. Obviously, a mutant or mutants are being blamed for this but no one can confirm that. This is the only picture of the perpetrator."

Hank had opened the folder and saw a picture of something flying through the night sky, a figure burning like a living star. Hank had a good idea of who this was, but right now he didn't think it would be smart of him to admit that.

"Do you have any idea what that is?"

"No idea, sir." Hank lied.

The President nodded as he took the folder back from him.

"Do you think that maybe you and…your sources from the past could find out?"

"Maybe." Hank responded. "Can you do something about these Sentinels?"

"I'll find out what's being going on. I promise."

Hank smiled, greatful as the President then stuck out his hand. He accepted it and the two of them shook hands.

"I think the two of us did a lot of good work." McKenna said. "I'm sorry things came to this."

"As am I, Mr. President."

They then let each other go as Hank slowly turned and headed out of the room, so he could head back to the mansion. So he could inform the team about what he had just learned...that Jean has been destorying cities around the world. After he watched Hank leave the room, the President walked to his phone and pressed a button so he could speak to his secretary.

"Get Bolivar Trask in here."


	79. Defenses are Down

XXXXXX

After about several minutes of waiting Bolivar Trask walked through the doors of the Oval Office and straightened his tie while eyeing the President wondering what he was about to be bothered with now.

"You wished to see me, sir?"

"Yes, it's about something Henry told me about."

"Speaking of him, I heard that you ordered his release from prison."

"Yes, I did."

Trask sighed as he had to remind himself to be respectful to the other man.

"Sir, I believe you know the penalty for mutants who don't register is jail time."

"Is being hunted by robots a penalty as well?"

"What do you mean?"

"Henry told me these 'Sentinels' are out going after un-registered mutants. What is the meaning of this?"

"You gave me your permission to develop better weapons to fight dangerous mutants." Trask responded.

"You never told me anything about robots. Do you have any idea how the public will react when they see them in the streets?"

"The people need protection. If you haven't noticed, we have mutants attacking police stations, government offices, hospitals, and not to mention the death of Senator Creed."

"I am aware that Senator Creed was killed." McKenna said stiffly. "I know what's going on out there because of this registration act."

"Then you should know we have a war going on American soil."

"Well, it ends today. I don't want another one of those Sentinels released out into the public again."

Trask watched as the President sat back down at his desk before flexing his fingers and shaking his head.

"I'm sorry Mr. President, but I can't do that."

McKenna looked up at him with a somewhat shocked look on his face after what his Secretary of Defense just said to him.

"I am the President of the United States."

"McKenna, turn of the television." Trask smirked. "Look what's going on and then tell me if you really think that matters right now."

The two of them continued to stare at each other when suddenly the lights in the room flickered for a moment before going off. They waited for the back-up generator to turn things back on but it didn't happen. Suddenly the room began to shake rapidly as something could be heard over them, up in the sky.

Suddenly, the door busted open as several agents came into the room and quickly gathered the President.

"Mr. President, we need to move you to a safe location."

"What's happening?"

"There is an anatomy flying over the skies."

Just as the agents got him out of the room the power came back on in the building as Trask quickly went over to the red phone, getting him immediate contact with NORAD.

"Get fighter pilots up in the air, now!"

After getting the order, pilots quickly ran from the headquarters located at the Peterson Air Force Base located near Colorado Springs. As soon as they got into the jets they went up into the air and began flying at an incredible speed towards their destination of Washington D.C.

Back in the Situation Room, Trask was in touch with General Thomas Lawson who was one of the commanders at the base.

"Secretary Trask, we just launched fighter pilots up."

"Good, how long before they get here?"

However, before he could get a response Trask could hear an explosion going off on the other side of the phone.

"What was that?"

"Sir, we're under attack!"

Trask then looked around the room widely as one of his assistants came running into the room.

"The object is no longer in our skies."

"Where did it go?"

"We don't know, we lost track of it."

Trask's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he heard more yells and explosions coming from the NORAD base. Could the anatomy now be over the skies of Colorado? How could that be possible, nothing, not even the fasters jets could go that fast. Then it quickly came to him…it had to be a mutant.

At the NORAD base, the jets were quickly called back as now they were under attack over their own skies. As the jets sliced through the clouds, it wasn't long before they came right behind something that made all the pilots eyes widen in shock…a giant bird that was made of flame.

"My god, what is that?" One of the pilots asked into his ear piece.

"I don't know. A mutant, I guess." Another pilot answered.

"How do we proceed?"

"Fire on three." Commander Lawson responded as he continued to monitor what was going on over the skies.

All of the pilots readied their missiles and locked on to their target.

"One…two…three!"

Jean smirked when she sensed about a half dozen missiles being fired at her. She closed her eyes and concentrated, making most of them explode before they even came close to hitting her.

Focusing on one particular missile, Jean made it turn back around, firing right back at one of the fighter jets. The pilot inside screamed before his jet was struck, it exploded and sent flaming debris down to the ground below. Jean then telepathically got into the second pilot's head, forcing him to shoot a missile at the other fighter jet, destroying it before knocking the next two jets out of the air with a simple wave of the arm before grabbing on to the sixth and final one telekinetically and flinging it forward.

It crashed down onto a mountain, causing a giant explosion as pieces of the jet began falling to the ground below. Parts of the jet were everywhere and the pilot inside had been killed on impact. Jean then began flying down to the command center and focused her attention on it.

The last thing Trask heard was a scream before an explosion before static.

"Commander Lawson?" Trask questioned.

No answer as everyone in the room looked around at each other.

"We've lost them, sir."

"Somebody find out what that was." Trask ordered. "Find out what that was, and find out what damage has been done."

As the men in the room began scrambling around, Trask rubbed his head as he looked back up at the giant screen in the room. He then wondered if President McKenna would think the Sentinels were necessary now that NORAD had just apparently been taken out in just a matter of a few minutes. A guard then came into the room and spoke up.

"Is it safe for the President?"

"For now." Trask responded.


	80. Kill Mercy Within

XXXXXX

Later that night, Scott quietly gathered Logan, Bobby, Rogue, Kitty, Peter, John, and Remy in the office that use to belong to the Professor that now was his. Ororo was still in the infirmary, refusing to leave Kurt's side. They all stood silent as they waited for the new headmaster to speak, during the wait Rogue made eye contact with Remy who smiled at her. She smiled back before looking over at John who was standing by himself at the window. He briefly made eye contact with her before staring back at the floor.

"Good evening everyone." Scott finally began.

"What's this about, Scott?" Bobby asked.

He shifted on his feet for a moment before responding;

"It's Jean."

They all looked at each other after hearing that, knowing what she had done and what she was capable of due to her uncontrollable advanced powers.

"If any of you have watched the news lately, you know there have been these attacks all over the world." Scott continued. "Jean is the one who is responsible. Earlier today, NORAD was destroyed…it was her."

"Why is she doing this?" Kitty asked. "With the registration act and the Sentinels things are just going to get worse."

"I know, I don't understand why Jean is doing this."

"Scott." Peter then spoke. "Did you have to deal with all this when you first started as an X-Man?"

Scott knew what he was talking about. Over the last year they all had dealt with so much, when he first began on the team they dealt with things but nothing like this.

"No."

He took a deep breath as he looked at each one of them, seeing their young faces, knowing they wanted to do so much more with their lives then just fight these constant battles.

"Listen, all of you. I know you're all exhausted and you're burnt out. I know you don't want to have to deal with this anymore…but we've got to push just a little bit more. We've got to stop this."

"Why?" Rogue asked as she stared at the floor.

"Because we're the only ones who can."

"That isn't good enough."

The group then exited out of the office to head back to their rooms. Rogue was about to head out to the backyard when the sound of John's voice stopped her.

"Hey, Rogue."

Rogue looked back at him, she smiled a little as she was happy that her friend was speaking to her. John shoved his hands in his pockets as he sighed and continued to look at her.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure."

"We're still friends, you know." John continued. "Even though things got a little-"

"I know." Rogue said. "We'll always be friends."

Rogue then walked closer and gave him a very brief kiss on the check. John gave her one last look before turning away and heading to the staircase. She continued to watch until he was out of sight and then continued on out of the mansion. She was okay, because she was finally making her decision tonight. Rogue had wrestled with this for months, she didn't know if this was the right thing but now she knew it was.

She couldn't be a member of the team anymore, she didn't want to be a soldier in a war anymore. Rogue sat down on the bench and looked up at the beautiful night sky as she slowly took out the needle and syringe that contained the last sample of the mutant cure. It was the key to what she wanted more than anything...a normal life.

Slowly, she swabbed her arm with a small bit of alcohol that she had brought out with her. Taking a deep breath she at the syringe one last time before injecting herself with the cure.

As the transformation took place, downtown Manhattan was now a war zone as the Attorney General building was under attack. The Morlocks were attacking the building, Arclight sent out a shockwave which blew out the windows of the office. Spike, Callisto, Psylocke, and several other members of the Morlocks were attacking any person in sight. Callisto smiled as she watched the carnage but in the back of her mind wondered why no police had arrived yet but quickly remembered the robots that had been created by the government which could be showing up in their place any minute now. But they weren't running, they had to do this even if it meant their death.

As they continued their attack for a few more minutes, sure enough they heard a rumbling go through the air as several Sentinels flu over the buildings and focused their attention on the mutants on the ground below.

"Mutant DNA detected." On them said.

All the Morlocks stopped and looked up at them.

"Surrender or be exterminated." Another Sentinel said.

"Never surrender." Callisto growled.

They all got into a fighting stance, prepared to defend themselves when suddenly the Sentinels began to shake violently as if they were being electrocuted. Callisto took a step back, not knowing what was going on with them.

And then, the robots suddenly disintegrated…instantly destroyed.

The Morlocks stood in shock at what had just happened. In just a few seconds the Sentinels had been turned into ash. Callisto looked around widely for why that happened when she finally saw someone standing on the roof of the tallest building.

Jean was standing there, her body glowing as she looked down at the group. Callisto continued to look up at the person…the mutant who had just saved them. She didn't even think as to why she was unable to pick up her trace and began cheering with the rest of the Morlocks. Jean continued to stare down at them as they cheered her. Jean focused her power on them as she extended her arm, then clenched her fist. And when she did, all of the Morlocks down below disintegrated into ash, much like she had done to the Professor a few weeks ago.

Callisto and the rest of the Morlocks had been killed instantly as the sound of police sirens could be heard for a short distance away. With a smirk, Jean took off into the sky as fire surrounded her in the form of a phoenix.

By the time the cops arrived, all they could do was look up in awe as the watched the phoenix fly through the sky before it disappeared.

"What the hell was that?" One of the officers asked himself out loud.

"A mutant." Another responded. "It had to be."

"It didn't look like any mutant I've ever seen."


	81. Brave New World

XXXXXX

Early the next morning inside of the Oval Office, press and camera all gathered around the desk of President McKenna as he prepared to give his speech live to the whole country. It was not only a matter of national security, but global security as well as this thing, whatever it was had been attacking places everywhere, and killing anyone, human and mutant alike.

"Mr. President." One of the crew spoke. "We go live in five…four…three…two…one."

Once the teleprompter turned on and words began slowly scowling down, McKenna spoke.

"My fellow Americans, in this time of crisis I warn every single one of you out there to stay strong, but now I must preach this last word of tolerance to but humans and mutants alike. I must tell you that in this time of chaos you have been misled. For humans out there who were scared of mutants, those who though that a registration act was the answer, I can honestly say to you that you were wrong. As of today, I must warn you all of a much graver threat."

Pictures then flashed up on the screen of what looked to be lights in the sky, bright flashes. It was the only pictures they had of what had been attacking cities all over the world…the only evidence they had of Phoenix.

"As many of you know, over the past few weeks there have been tragedies all over the world. But finally the other day, tragedy hit home as our own military, our defense was attacked."

This time more clearer pictures of Phoenix showed up on the screen, showing the firebird that Phoenix formed.

"We are not sure what this is. It is not a mutant, as our most advanced computer screenings did not detect any mutant DNA. So, in a matter of public safety, I am urging everyone both human and mutant alike to come together to face this-"

'SLAM'

The back wall of the Oval Office was suddenly blasted open. McKenna was slammed into his desk, sent flying forward as debris was sent everywhere. The camera crew inside tried to run in a panic as Phoenix came floating in but they froze, becoming living statues.

Security waiting outside tried to run inside but they disintegrated into ash before they could get to the door. Phoenix then landed on the floor before the shaken and terrified President.

"President McKenna." Phoenix smiled. "We meet at last."

The cameras were still rolling and now every television on cable television was playing what was going on. Every person in their homes were glued to what was happening, people in Times Square had come to a stop and were watching what was going on the giant television screens.

"Who…who are you?" McKenna stammered.

"I am the one who attacked your military. I am the one who was caused the destruction all over the world."

Phoenix then glided around the floor and looked at the camera.

"You were right about one thing, I am not a mutant. I was before, I'm not now. I am more than a mutant, the next stage of evolution if you will."

Phoenix then turned the President's desk into glass, then into gold, then steel, before finally disintegrating it all together as McKenna watched in amazement. After a few seconds, he found the courage to look up at her, looking into her eyes.

"I don't understand." McKenna finally began. "If you can do all this, why are you causing such carnage and genocide? Why aren't using your abilities to better this planet, instead of trying to destroy it?"

"Hmm, then tell me what you consider justice?"

"Justice?"

"Rationale is a better word. Is the truth your rationale for living life like you all do?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just this." Phoenix began. "Words like 'justice' and truth' are empty concepts that have led societies through cancerous histories. Through the ages, those who have blindly believed in these absolute truths have fought and died over empty platitudes."

Now even more people were watching what was going on, happening on live television. Scott was walking through the hallways on the mansion when suddenly a voice of a student got his attention.

"Professor Summers! Jean is on television!"

Scott froze for a second before spinning around and running to the student lounge were the television was on, students gathered around. Scott forced his way forward and his eyes widened when he saw Jean, and saw were she was. Not the White House…not the President.

"Jean...what are you doing?" He whispered to himself as he watched and listened as Jean spoke.

"Today, you'll find people mistaking their own greed for truth, and eating the planet out from under them and condemning themselves to total annihilation, chanting their democracy and their freedom as though they were a religion. They're cheerfully justifying their journey towards self-destruction." Phoenix then finished.

"But how does any of that justify any of what you've done?" McKenna then asked.

"Don't you get it?" Phoenix then seethed. "The only way to truly salvage this disgusting world, is to destroy everything on it so a new world can be rebuilt!"

"You...are a monster." McKenna whispered.

"My powers will create the destruction of this planet and the re-newel of life itself."

"You can't be that powerful."

"I am. I have only shown you a tenth of what I can truly do."

"People will fight you, they will stop you."

"No force on earth is more powerful than evolution itself. Humans and mutants alike will perish by my hand. They couldn't learn to live together, so they will die together. And when that happens, I will give birth to new life and I will watch over them making sure things never get to they way they are now."

"No one has that right!" McKenna then yelled.

"I do, and I will." Phoenix responded. "Some people believe the earth was created in six days, I will destroy it in six hours. And I am actually being kind giving you that much time."

Phoenix then turned away and flu out of the hole in the wall that she created as the communication died and the telvisions all across the country went black before going to static. Panic then arose in every street corner but at the mansion Scott stood in shocked silence as he now had to accept that the woman he loved was truly gone. She had become something else.

He then turned around to see Hank looking at him, his expression the same as his.

"Hank, gather the team in the war room."

Hank nodded before turning and leaving the room. Scott really didn't know what they could do, even all together they were no match for Jean's capabilites but they had to do something. Jean said six hours and he believed her, he just hoped that the connection that he had with her, the psychic bond still held up and he could locate her in time.


	82. Gearing Up

XXXXXX

Due to his connection with Jean, Scott was able to see that she was heading to the heart of Europe…the United Nations office in Geneva. He guessed that was going to be the start of her all out destruction of the planet. He then ordered all of the X-Men to the War Room. While most of the team showed up two were absent...Storm and Rogue. While Logan went upstairs to look for Rogue, Hank walked into the infirmary to see Ororo. She was in the same spot she'd been in for days. In a chair right next to Kurt's bed side.

"Ororo." He began but she didn't even react to his presence. "We have a situation."

"There always is." She muttered but didn't look at him.

"It's Jean, she on her way to attack the United Nations office. We need your help."

"I'm not leaving. You don't need me."

"Yes we do. We need all the help we can get…the power that she had now is ungodly."

"Sound like you need a miracle. Unfortunately for us there's no such thing."

"Ororo-"

"No, Hank."

Hank frowned but turned away as he didn't have the time to go back and forth with her on this. But just before he could walk out a gasp came from the bed. Kurt had opened his eyes and was widely looking around the room.

"Kurt!" Ororo yelled.

Ororo almost cried and threw herself at him in relief but managed to restrain herself. Hank then quickly moved over to the bed and placed his hand on Kurt's shoulder to stop his rapid movements.

"Where am I?" Kurt gasped.

"You're at the mansion, you're okay. Do you remember what happen?"

"Is Ororo okay?" He asked, ignoring the question.

"I'm fine, Kurt." Ororo said as she moved into his line of sight. "You saved me."

Kurt smiled as he then extended his three fingered hand which Ororo took in hers. Tears of joy now streamed down her face as Hank then looked over at his teammate.

"I think Ororo, that this qualifies as a miracle."

Ororo wiped away a few tears as she looked back at Hank.

"Will you help us now?"

While they were taking care of Kurt downstairs, Logan had reached Rogue's room and lightly knocked on the door before opening it up and walking inside. Rogue was standing by the window, looking outside. She had on her green cloak and her bag was on top of her bed…she also wasn't wearing any gloves. Once she heard him come in she looked over and Logan stared at her in confusion as it looked like she was getting ready to leave.

"Rogue?" He questioned. "What's going on?"

Rogue looked down at her feet for a moment before answering.

"I took the cure."

Logan's brows furrowed in confusion.

"The cure? How?"

"I had the last sample."

"This whole time?"

Rogue nodded as she walked closer towards him. She then reached out and ran her hand over his knuckles and then the top of his hand, nothing happened. That horrible feeling of draining someone's life didn't come over her. It was over…she was normal. Like she always wanted to be.

Logan looked down at their hands and smiled back at her.

"Good for you, kid."

"Do you mean that?"

"Yeah, of course I do."

"I still can't help but feel I let people down."

"Don't feel that way. It's your life, your decision. If I had to deal with that kind of mutation I probably would have taken the cure right away, I wouldn't of waited this long. You are so strong and you didn't let anyone down."

"So what's going on?" Rogue then asked.

"It's Jean…we're going after her." He didn't want to let her in on everything, that Jean had vowed to destroy the planet. She had finally gathered the guts to cure herself, he didn't want her to know that everything could be gone in just a few hours.

"Are you going to say goodbye to them?" Logan then asked.

"I already told Bobby what I was going to do, he won't be surprised. But John and Remy…they both like me and I like them. I don't want to put them through that or me."

He understood, when he first left the school he didn't say goodbye to anyone either other than her.

"I'll let them all know."

"Thank you, Logan. Thank you for everything…for saving my life."

"You don't have to thank me for that...Marie."

Rogue then stood on her tip-toes and kissed Logan on the tips. He was a little taken aback by it as it lasted a few more seconds before Rogue pulled back and gave him a somewhat sad smile.

"Goodbye."

Downstairs, Shadowcat, Colossus, Pyro, Gambit, and Iceman were all getting dressed in the locker room. Pyro then placed a red mask over his face that covered most of his face but left his mouth exposed. Iceman looked at him as he laced up his boots.

"Where did you get that?"

"Made it myself." Pyro responded as he strapped on his wrist lighter.

"It looks cool." Gambit complimented as he threw his trench coat over his uniform.

"Thanks."

Wolverine had headed back downstairs and made his way back to the war room where Beast and Storm were finishing getting dressed.

"I see you're joining us." Wolverine remarked to the weather goddess.

"Kurt woke up."

"Good, finally a bit of good news."

The three of them then walked out in the hall as the younger members of the team. Iceman then looked around and noticed they were still once short.

"Where's Rogue?" He asked.

"She's not coming." Wolverine answered. "She took the cure."

They all looked at each other after hearing the news. Beast and Iceman both knew of her having the cure so they weren't as surprised as the rest of them were.

"She wanted a normal life, a future. But right now there might not even be a future."

Pyro and Gambit looked at each other, knowing that they had been fighting and nodded at each other in a unspoken truce. Wolverine was about to continue his speech when suddenly Cyclops walked in…in full uniform.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"I'm going with you." Cyclops responded, his tone initiated that he was surprised that was even a question.

"You can't."

"The hell I can't."

"You said it yourself, the kids are going to need you like they needed the Professor. You're the headmaster now, we can't take a chance on something happening to you out there."

"This is different, Jean is out there."

"It's not Jean."

"Don't start with that."

"You asked me to lead the team…do you trust me?"

Cyclops took a deep breath but didn't answer.

"Do you trust me?" He repeated.

"Yes."

"Then let me take care of this. The students need you here, not out in battle."

Cyclops gave him one last look before turning away. Wolverine then changed into uniform and the X-Men then filled into the hanger and into the jet. As they climbed the ramp, Storm spoke to Wolverine;

"I know that Scott couldn't do what needs to be done." Storm began. "Can you? Will you?"

Wolverine didn't respond as he went to his seat and Storm and Beast powered up the jet. Cyclops went his way to the war room to monitor what was going to happen next, in case the team didn't make it in time to Geneva and Jean went somewhere else. As he closed his eyes, he concentrated and after a few moments saw Jean in her firebird form flying over the ocean.


	83. The World's Stage

XXXXXX

Members of the United Nations Secruity Council, members representing China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and ten other countries were currently meeting in the Geneva building when suddenly it began to shake lightly making everyone inside look at each other in confusion.

The international media who was covering the event were the first to notice when the sky turned blood-red. They then screamed and ran inside when Phoenix appeared and began to fly around the building.

Soldiers began firing up at her but the bullets turned into powder before they even got close to her. With the simple blink of an eye the soldiers were disintergrated. Some of the media were brave enough to come towards the doors and pointed their cameras at the god-like creature.

"Time to finish this." Phoenix then smirked.

She focused her power on the building but the X-Jet landed on the roof before she could. The team then filed out as she narrowed her eyes before disintergrating the jet itself. The blast caused the whole team to fall off the roof and crash to the ground below, fortunately the height wasn't that great for the fall to kill them.

Beast groaned as he got up just as Phoenix landed on the ground.

"Jean." He began.

"Phoenix." She responded.

"Remember! Remember who you were, what you meant to us. What we meant to you. Stop what you're doing, you can stop this."

"I don't want to stop. The people of this world deserve to be punished. I won't stop until everything is destroyed!"

Beast was then thrown backwards by an invisible force and hit nearby tree.

By then, the entire team had recovered from the fall and were facing her. All of the media in the meantime had the cameras pointed at them. The whole world had a front row seat at this upcoming battle where everything was on the line.

Iceman suddenly launched an ice beam at her, Pyro sent fire and Gambit fired off a card but they all disappeared into thin air before they hit her. Storm fired a lightning bolt but Phoenix deflected it, Colossus was metaled up and tried to sneak behind her but he was sent flying off his feet and crashed into the side of the building. Shadowcat tried to move forward and phase beneath the ground but she suddenly froze in place, unable to move.

"Stand down." Phoenix ordered. "You won't be able to stop me. I will kill you all like I did the Professor."

That comment caused Storm to seeth in anger.

"Whatever you are, you are going to die today. To give Jean Grey's soul peace."

"Peace?" She almost laughed.

With her eyes rolled in the back of her head, Storm tried to conjure up the most powerful and devastating weather she could but it was like the red sky wouldn't cooperate with her. After another minute of trying, she finally gasped and slumped to one knee, exhausted.

"You are powerless, weather goddess." Phoenix mocked. "Even the weather belongs to me now."

"So why don't you just kill us?" Wolverine then snapped. "You obviously can. Stop toying with us and get on with it. Why are you holding back?"

She smirked at him but didn't answer. He then took a step towards her as his claws went back into his knuckles.

"Somewhere, behind those black eyes is Jean Grey and I know there is still some good in you. So don't come at us as an enemy, stand beside us like you use to before it's too late."

Suddenly, the black in Phoenix's eyes cleared and Wolverine was staring into Jean's normal eyes.

"Logan."

"Jean?" He gasped.

He ran towards her but her eyes quickly went to black again as Wolverine was lifted high off his feet into the air before being slammed down on the ground.

"Jean is gone." Phoenix laughed.

The team backed away and looked at each other as they tried to silently come up with a new game plan. Right now they had to accept that this wasn't Jean, that she had been completely consumed by her powers, the abilities that no living person should ever have. But before anything could continue the rumbling of what sounded like oversized lawnmowers could be heard in the distance.

It was the rumbling of a dozen Sentinels flying through the air. Wolverine's eyes widened when he saw them as the X-Men looked at him for what to do next.

"Ah, the human's back-up has arrived."

Phoenix then grinned evilly at Wolverine.

"Why don't I let you all handle them? Show the world just how good you are? Remember that everyone is watching you."

She nodded towards the cameras that were filming all this all before disappearing.

"Mutants. Surrender of be exterminated." Came one of the robot's voices.

Colossus came over and grabbed Wolverine. Spinning him around once before throwing him with all his might, Wolverine flu through the air before crashing into one of them. He began stabbing it widely with his claws, sparks and cables shot out but it was still active.

"The head, Logan!" Beast shouted. "Stab it on the top of its head!"

Wolverine then lunged up and drove his claws in the top of the Sentinels head. Its red eyes dimmed before it collapsed in a heap on the ground. Gambit charged up one of his cards and threw it at a Sentinel, it connected with its head and blew up, taking another one out.

At this point, Iceman and Pyro were standing back to back as they continuelessly fired their respective mutations at the robots. Beast roared as he threw himself up into the air and landed on the shoulders of a Sentinel. He began to pound on top of its head with all his might until it finally dropped to the ground, dismantled.

Colossus took to fighting one of them himself. Balling up his fist, he threw a punch so hard it connected with the Sentinels head and literally took it right off.

Pyro was blazing up a Sentinel with fire so hot the robot was beginning to melt as Iceman fired an ice-shard at a Sentinel's head, taking yet another one out. He looked behind him at his friend and quickly noticed another Sentinel coming at them. Pyro hadn't noticed as the robot fired at him, Iceman quickly tackled Pyro out of the way and they fell to the ground just in time.

As Iceman got to one knee, ice began covering his entire body until it completly was over him, head to toe. The Sentinel fired again but it bounced off the think ice on his body as he stood up and finished it off by sending a powerful ice beam that engulfed its head.

As Pyro regained his bearings, he looked over at his best friend and was shocked to see his appearance. He truly was an _Iceman._

"Holy shit. I didn't know you could do that."

Iceman looked down at himself.

"Neither did I."

Elsewhere, Shadowcat was trying to stay near Beast and wasn't paying any attention when a blast was sent her way. Suddenly her feet left the ground, two arms were wrapped around her waist as flu upwards. She screamed and looked around widely before seeing the face of Warren…and he was flying.

"Warren!" She yelled. "What are you doing here!?"

"It's Angel today!" He yelled back.

Angel continued to fly into he could land on top of the United Nations building. Kitty looked at him and saw he had what looked like metal wings strapped to his body.

"Like them?" He grinned. "It's a new prototype."

"Warren what are you doing here?" She asked again.

"Are you kidding? After what you said to me back at my office, and now this going on. I couldn't just sit back and do nothing."

"You don't have to do this."

"Forget it." He then dug into his pocket and pulled out what looked to be a remote and handed it to her. "Take this. When I fly to you up over them, press the red button. It will turn them off."

Kitty then back at the battle and saw there were six robots left.

"Okay."

Wrapping his arms around her waist again, Angel took off into the air. Back on the ground, Storm was crawling away from a Sentinel as it targeted her and because of what Jean did to the sky she was helpless at the moment. She closed her eyes as the robot pointed its gun at her but suddenly its eyes dimmed and it fell to the ground.

Angel continued flying Kitty as she pressed the button right when she was over them. Wolverine was in the process of stabbing one when it just collapsed suddenly, like a mound of junk. Finally, they reached the last one and pressed the button on the remote, shutting off the robot's CPU before Angel set the two of them back down.

"Warren." Beast breathed as he walked over to his former team mate. "I never thought I'd see you again."

"I couldn't stay away for this one."

The team then gathered together.

"Alright." Boomed a voice.

Phoenix then materialized and was now hovering over all of them.

"Enough of this. Its time to finish you off."

Wolverine looked towards Angel.

"You didn't happen to bring a remote that would stop her did you?"

"Unfortunately, no."


	84. Until the End

XXXXXX

Anyone on the planet that had access to a television had to be watching what was going on by now. The international media who were stuck terrified in the United Nations building kept trying to get a better angle in the windows to capture the scene of the battle going on outside. Back at the mansion, Scott was in his office watching the whole thing while chewing on the nail of his thumb until he tasted blood.

"A group of mutants have arrived and are trying everything within their power to stop this creature's attack." Began one of the reporters.

Scott closed his eyes for a moment, as it pained him to hear the love of his life simply referred to as a 'creature'. Back at Geneva, the grounds of what was now a battlefield, the X-Men were trying to quickly come up with a new game plan but Phoenix was already coming back at them.

Flying over the team, Phoenix simply waved her arm and the entire team minus Wolverine fell to the ground as they were knocked out. After that, she laughed as a telekinetic storm began to rage in the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. The water began to rise up as it formed giant walls that were getting ready to crash down on the areas of land that they surrounded.

Wolverine looked down at his fallen teammates and realized he was the last one left.

"Jean!" He shouted.

She ignored him as red lightning began to fire off in the sky. Fiery wings engulfed Phoenix, her rage embodying the form of a firebird. She glowed like a second sun as she landed on top of a hill, Wolverine took a step towards her.

"Jean...I know you're still there!"

After a brief flurry, the camera was able to get a good shot of Wolverine standing before Phoenix. Scott was breathing so heavily by this point he felt like he could pass out at any moment. Suddenly, a flash came into the room causing Scott to fly off his feet and hit the wall. As he looked up, he was shocked to see Jean before him.

"What...how?"

He then looked back at the television and saw that Jean was still at Geneva at the same time.

"I can do anything." Jean explained as she smiled. "You should know that by now, Scott."

"Jean, what are you doing?" Scott asked as he got back up.

"It's over, Scott."

He wanted to approach her but didn't.

"What have you done, Jean?"

"I'm bringing peace between humans and mutants."

"By trying to kill all of them?!"

She smiled a little.

"Let me show you."

Jean walked towards him and placed her hand on top of his forehead. Right then, Scott began seeing images of people in Times Square all standing together, in Canada, Brazil, places in Asia, Australia, all standing together as they watched what was going on at the United Nations building as Wolverine marched his way up towards Phoenix.

Pulling away, Scott gasped as he looked back at Jean.

"Don't you see? For the first time, humans and mutants are standing together, united."

"They are all united against you!"

"Exactly. They needed something to united against, a common threat. I had to make them believe that I was a threat to their very existence…so some needed to be sacrificed."

"You have the power to make everyone think however you wanted. Why didn't you just use your telepathy to change everyone?" Scott asked.

"The Professor always said that we can't take away anyone's free will. I didn't take anyone's free will away…I just made them think something that wasn't exactly true."

She then looked towards the television where Wolverine was continuing to fight against her.

"The whole world is about to witness a mutant striking down the greatest threat humanity has ever seen."

Back at Geneva, Wolverine continued up the hill, but Phoenix knocked him backwards. Growling, he lifted himself back up as now bits of his uniform started flying off slowly as was some of his skin. She continued to resist and he is forced to crawl up towards her. Mere feet separate them, when as he got up his entire torso was ripped apart, revealing his adamantium skeleton. Gritting his teeth, he continues. His face was now scratched horribly as was his arm.

Finally, he is before her. Phoenix looks at him and smiled wickedly.

"Would you die for them?" She then asked.

"No…not for them." Wolverine gasped.

She looked at him confused for a moment as fire still surrounded her.

"For you…for you."

Slowly, her eyes return to normal for a brief moment and the flames recede.

"Logan…save me."

"I love you."

Wolverine then stabbed Phoenix in the abdomen with his claws. She gasped as pain shot through her entire body. Her black eyes then went back to her normal color as she smiled at Wolverine who was tearing up as he held her body in her arms as she died. The telekinetic storm that raged in the oceans began to stop as the water settled down and the sky slowly went back to normal. The red disapeared and the bright sun was shining through.

"The creature has been stuck down." A reporter yelled. "We believe that the creature has been killed."

After hearing the news, people in churches, synagogues, and mosques all cheered. People around the world, white, black, Asian, Hispanic, human and mutant all celebrated side by side as their planet, their whole existence had been saved. The news continued to show the replay of Phoenix being stuck down…by a mutant. A mutant was humanities savior.

Back at the White House, President McKenna who was being kept in an underground bunker breathed a sigh of relief as he continued to watch the coverage of what was going on in Geneva. By this point, the rest of the X-Men had woken up and now walked over to where Logan was, sitting on the ground as he sobbed and continued to rock the dead body of Jean back and forth in his arms.

Storm looked over at Beast who was beginning to tear up himself, knowing that he didn't want this, he didn't want Jean to die but they didn't have a choice in the end and was glad that Logan had succeded. Pyro slowly took off his mask as he looked at Iceman who placed a hand on his shoulder, Angel and Kitty hugged, Colossus looked away from the scene. They all had mixed feelings right now.

After making sure the door was locked in the office, Scott looked back at Jean who's body now looked transparent as she began to glow.

"Jean...I don't know if I can go along with this." He began.

"You have to. Revealing what I really did will just put humans and mutants at odds again. It will destroy the peace that so many died for."

"Peace based on a lie."

"But peace, nonetheless."

"How long do you think it will last?"

Jean smiled a little.

"As long as it can."

Taking a deep breath, Scott walked towards her and reached for her hand but it went right through hers...he couldn't take a hold of it.

"I think the reason I came back, was because of you." Jean began. "You didn't want to let me go...you refused to believe that what happened back at Alkali Lake was my decision. I came back because you weren't ready to say goodbye. Are you ready now?"

"I think so." Scott responded, like he had much of a choice.

Jean then smiled and placed her hands on either side of Cyclops' face and kissed him. He kissed her back, wanting to warp his arms around her, to embrace her but he couldn't. After a few more seconds, she pulled away and looked right into his eyes.

"I love you, Jean."

"I know. And I'll be watching."

Then with another bright flash, Jean was gone. He then looked out the window at the blue sky and felt a feeling he really couldn't discribe at the moment. He then wondered where she might go. Would she discover life somewhere else? Would she become some sort of entity? He really had no idea as a knock then came at the door. He slowly walked over, unlocked and opened it to see Artie, Jones, Siren, and few other students standing there.

"Professor Summers?" Siren questioned. "Is everything alright?"

He smiled a little.

"Yes, I think it will be."


	85. Finale

XXXXXX

One week after everything went down at Geneva, Logan took off from the school on his motorcycle. He really wasn't sure where he was heading, or where he would end up. He just knew he needed to get away from the school…he couldn't describe why he just needed to leave. It was just the way he was.

Currently in Alberta, Canada, he slowly got off his bike and headed into a rundown bar that was vaguely familiar. Logan walked through the door and walked further in he suddenly heard the cocking of a gun.

"Heard a noise." Said a voice. "Thought it might be an animal."

Slowly turning his head, Logan looked back at the man who had a shotgun. As they made eye contact they knew. They both knew that they had seen each other before. Logan then smirked a little as he remembered this was the bar he first met Rogue at.

"I remember you." The bartender said. It wasn't something you exactly forget…a man his claws coming out of his knuckles.

"Yeah?" Logan responded.

"Yeah."

He then lowered the gun and Logan walked towards the stools and took a seat as the man walked around to the bar.

"Kitchen's closed."

"All I want is a beer."

The bartender took out a bottle and opened it before handing it to Logan. He then stared at him for a moment before taking out a rag and began wiping down the counter.

"I saw you on the news." He began. "They say you're a hero."

"A hero?" Logan smirked.

He nodded.

"So, you headed home?"

Logan looked at him for second before nodding.

"Something like that."

While Logan was heading on the road to see where it would take him next, Rogue…or Marie now was heading up the steps to Alcorn State University. She was normal now, no longer a mutant. As she reached the top stair and looked at the building and at the other students that were going there also, she knew she should feel happy but at the moment she couldn't help but feel she made a big mistake.

Nothing could change it now, she was a human now. She should feel happy

She looked at her hand, a hand that no longer needed a glove. A hand that couldn't absorb the life force of anyone she touched and knew she should be happy, and she was.

It was just that the mansion had become her home, the team had become her family. She was apart of something, she was for better or worse, a mutant. Holding her head up, Marie continued on into the school, knowing that it was far too late now. She wanted a normal life and this was the start of it.

Elsewhere on a private plane, Ororo Munroe had gone through with her plans to retire after dealing with Jean and she had followed through on it. She had said her goodbyes to the students and to Scott and missed them already but it was time for her to go. Sitting next to her was a fully healed Kurt Wagner who asked to come with her to Kenya.

She smiled at him as he continued to look out the window when the small plane came to a land on the strip. The two of them then got a ride to the village Ororo had stayed at until she was a teenager when it was attacked and she was recruited by the Professor. She had been gone for so long, Ororo wondered if the people there would remember her.

But once she got reunited with the tribe leader, Achmed el-Gibar and the rest of them fell to their knees to honor 'the weather goddess' she looked at Kurt who smiled back at her, they remembered all right.

Back at the mansion, Scott headed down to the dressing room to see the remainder of the team, Iceman, Gambit, Pyro, Colossus, and Shadowcat suiting up for a Danger Room session. It was going to be a little different today as they were going to be guiding Jubilee, Siren, Cannonball, and Quicksilver through their first training session.

"Alright guys, listen up." Scott began as he got their attention. "As you know, Logan is gone and we knew someone to lead the team. If anyone is interested, I'll certainly be as of objective as I can in picking a leader."

"Well, I think it's obvious who the new leader should be." Pyro responded.

Scott frowned a little. He certainly didn't want John as the leader…he reminded him too much of Logan.

"It should be Bobby." The pyromaniac finished.

Iceman looked at his friend in surprise as did the others. Scott himself was pleased by the suggestion and since no one seemed to object he approached the younger mutant.

"Well, Bobby? How about it?"

"Yes." Iceman answered.

"Alright, make me proud today son."

As Scott turned to head out, Bobby quickly went over to John.

"I can't believe you suggested me."

"Come on, Bobby." Pyro responded as he placed on his mask. "He was going to make you the leader anyway."

As they continued to get ready, Iceman's chest puffed up with pride as it began to sink in a little. He was the new leader of the X-Men. While Scott headed to the control room to watch the session he ran into a blonde, older man out in the hallway he didn't recognize at first but as few seconds went by, he knew who he was.

"Scott." The man greeted. "How longs it been?"

"Sean Cassidy." Scott smiled as he hugged the former X-Men. "It's been a few years. What are you doing here?"

"Come on, you didn't think I'd miss my daughters first Danger Room session did you?"

"You are more than welcome to watch."

As the two men headed into the control room and took a seat, Sean was the first to speak up.

"Did you see Hank's inauguration yesterday?"

Scott nodded. Hank had been appointed President McKenna's new vice president after his old one stepped down. The mutant registration act had also been done away with by a unanimous congress.

"Of course. I never would have missed it."

"You'll never believe what I saw this morning." Sean continued. "You remember James Hawkings?"

Scott nodded. He was the mutant child who stayed here for a little while before being pulled out of by his father. His powers were the catalyst for the mutant cure. With his green skin and yellow eyes he wasn't that easy to forget.

"I saw him the other day at a bus stop with other kids around him. They were getting along fine, they treated him like he was normal."

"That's great. I'll also noticed the protest groups against mutants have stopped." Scott responded.

"Yeah, it's kinda like what the Professor wanted. I wish he was still around to see it."

Scott didn't answer as his thoughts drifted back to Jean and was thankful that Sean hadn't brought her up. He must have remembered their relationship back when they were teens.

He thought about Jean, and how she had planned this. By attacking places all over the world, killing humans and mutants alike by the thousand…by getting them to unite against her, the greatest threat to humanity. When the whole world watched a mutant strike her down, save them all it finally turned a corner. Mutants were no longer looked at as freaks or dangerous. The team was known, Wolverine was known they were labeled heroes by the media, by the President, by the United Nations. Scott only hoped that it would last.

The two men then watched as the doors to the Danger Room opened up and the team led the new recruits in. Sean smiled as he saw his daughter and the room inside began to change and the training began.

Scott looked on as a proud headmaster, the new face of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters and hoped that Xavier was looking down upon him now, proud of him and how he was running things. As he watched Iceman, the new leader of the X-Men he thought back to the days when was just a kid and was proud of the man he became.

He didn't know how long the peace would last, or what awaited them in the future. But whether it was terrible or wondrous he did know one thing. Charles Xavier's dream was alive and well…

And it was in good hands.

The End.


End file.
